The emerald-bellied puffleg (''Eriocnemis aline'') is a species of

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...

in the "brilliants", tribe

Heliantheini Heliantheini is one of the two tribes that make up the subfamily Lesbiinae of the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other tribe in the subfamily is Lesbiini. The informal name "brilliants" has been proposed for this group as it includes the ge ...

in the subfamily

Lesbiinae Lesbiinae is one of the six subfamily, subfamilies that make up the hummingbird family (biology), family Trochilidae. The subfamily is divided into two Tribe (biology), tribes: Heliantheini ("brilliants") containing 14 genera and Lesbiini ("coqu ...

. It is found in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

, and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world'' Version 5. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v5_Dec20.zip xls zipped 1 MBretrieved 27 May 2021

Taxonomy and systematics

The emerald-bellied puffleg has two subspecies, the nominate ''E. a. aline'' and ''E. a. dybowskii''. It is closely related to the

colorful puffleg The colorful puffleg (''Eriocnemis mirabilis'') is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to Colombia.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds of t ...

(''E. mirabilis'') and they have variously been deemed

sister species In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

or superspecies. However, one author has suggested that because their plumage is so different from that of other ''Eriocnemis'' pufflegs that they should have their own genus.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 31 January 2022. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved February 1, 2022

Description

The emerald-bellied puffleg is the smallest puffleg. It is long and weighs . It has a straight black bill. The male of the nominate subspecies has dark shining green upperparts with a narrow glittering bluish green forehead. It has a large white patch with green spots on its upper breast and the rest of the underparts are glittering bluish green. The tail is short and slightly forked; it is green with a markedly iridescent underside. The female is similar but without the bluish green forehead; its wings and tail are somewhat shorter. Both sex's leg puffs are white and very large. Subspecies ''E. a. dybowskii'' is larger than the nominate but the male's forehead patch is smaller and the white breast is less sharply defined.Heynen, I. and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Emerald-bellied Puffleg (''Eriocnemis aline''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.embpuf1.01 retrieved March 15, 2022

Distribution and habitat

The nominate subspecies of emerald-bellied puffleg is the more northerly. It is found in Colombia's Central and Eastern Andes from

Boyacá Department Boyacá () is one of the thirty-two departments of Colombia, and the remnant of Boyacá State, one of the original nine states of the "United States of Colombia". Boyacá is centrally located within Colombia, almost entirely within the moun ...

south through Ecuador on the eastern slope of the Andes. ''E. a. dybowskii'' is found on the eastern slope of the Peruvian Andes as far south as the

Department of Pasco Pasco () is a department and region in central Peru. Its capital is Cerro de Pasco. Political division The region is divided into 3 provinces ( es, provincias, singular: ), which are composed of 28 districts (''distritos'', singular: ''distrito ...

. The species inhabits tropical and subtropical

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

, especially humid types like

cloudforest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...

. It occurs in the forest interior and small openings but shuns forest edges and more open landscapes. In elevation it is usually found between .

Behavior

Movement

The emerald-bellied puffleg is sedentary.

Feeding

The emerald-bellied puffleg forages for nectar in dense vegetation; it usually feeds between about of the ground. It also feeds on small insects.

Breeding

Nothing is known about the emerald-bellied puffleg's breeding

phenology Phenology is the study of periodic events in biological life cycles and how these are influenced by seasonality, seasonal and interannual variations in climate, as well as environmental factor, habitat factors (such as elevation). Examples includ ...

Vocalization

The emerald-bellied puffleg makes "a single, slightly buzzy, metallic note, 'tzit'" call at irregular intervals while hovering.

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed the emerald-bellied puffleg as being of Least Concern. It has a fairly large range but its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. It "seems to depend on humid forests which have already suffered heavy damage, and are currently under threat of further deforestation."

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1263833

emerald-bellied puffleg The emerald-bellied puffleg (''Eriocnemis aline'') is a species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in the subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of th ...

Birds of the Colombian Andes Birds of the Ecuadorian Andes Birds of the Peruvian Andes

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot