The buffy hummingbird (''Leucippus fallax'') is a species of
bird in the
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 ...
family Trochilidae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Leucippus''. This bird lives in
dry forest and
scrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, Herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or ...
in northern
South America where it feeds on insects and the nectar, flesh, and juice of cactus fruits.
Description
The male and female buffy hummingbird are similar in appearance but the female tends to be less brightly coloured, and there is considerable variation in shade between individuals. The back and upper parts of the bird are a dull green, the underparts pale cinnamon-buff and the belly and
undertail coverts
A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which, as the name implies, cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts
The ear coverts are sm ...
white. The tail is dull green with a transverse grey bar and a rounded end. There is a white spot behind the eye and the beak is slender and straight. The upper mandible is black and the lower one pale with a black tip. The bird ranges from in length.
Taxonomy
The hummingbird is a member of the class
Aves
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
, the order
Apodiformes, the family
Trochilidae and the genus ''
Leucippus''.
This genus formerly included additional species. A
molecular phylogenetic
Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...
study published in 2014 found that ''Leucippus'' was
polyphyletic. To resolve the polyphyly the
Tumbes hummingbird and the
spot-throated hummingbird were moved to the resurrected genus ''
Thaumasius''.
[
]
Distribution and habitat
The buffy hummingbird 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 ...
, French Guiana, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are desert shrubland, thorny shrubs in arid areas and mangrove areas at elevations of up to . It forages at medium heights and near the ground. It tends to feed near the canopy of the forests that it inhabits.
Behavior
Feeding
Hummingbirds are specialist feeders on nectar and the buffy hummingbird consumes the nectar of such plants as '' Agave'' and '' Hibiscus'' and various species of cacti. The hummingbird will protect the flower patches that it feeds from. This hummingbird is unusual in that it also consumes the exposed flesh and the juice of the fruits of cacti in the genus ''Armatocereus
''Armatocereus'' (from Latin ''armatus'', "armed" and ''cereus'', "pliant/soft") is a genus of mostly tree-like cacti from South America (Ecuador and Peru). These species have a conspicuous constriction at the end of the annual growth. The flowe ...
''. This hummingbird also plays an important role in the pollination of flowers of ''Melocactus
''Melocactus'' (melon cactus), also known as the Turk's cap cactus, is a genus of cactus with about 30–40 species. They are native to the Caribbean, western Mexico through Central America to northern South America, with some species along the A ...
'', carrying the pollen on its plumage as it moves from flower to flower sipping nectar. In addition to plant matter, the bird consumes insects, which it catches in flight.
Migration
The buffy hummingbird migrates over small distances. During December to April, a period marked by minimal rainfall, the bird is generally found in areas with heavy thorn tree populations.
Reproduction
Male buffy hummingbirds perform courtship by plummeting from the sky in an arc-like fashion. They also produce mating calls during their fall. Most buffy hummingbird nests are found between the months of May and November, so breeding is believed to occur during this period of time. The nest is cup-shaped and built on top of a low branch or in the fork of a bush. It is composed of the soft fibers of the tree cotton and decorated externally with bits of bark, lichen and leaf. Two eggs are laid.
Conservation status
The total population size of the buffy hummingbird is unknown. However, it has a large range and there is no indication that the population of these hummingbirds is decreasing. Due to these factors, the bird is considered by 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 ...
to be of " least concern".
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1261736
buffy hummingbird
The buffy hummingbird (''Leucippus fallax'') is a species of bird in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Leucippus''. This bird lives in dry forest and scrubland in northern South America where it feed ...
Birds of Colombia
Birds of Venezuela
buffy hummingbird
The buffy hummingbird (''Leucippus fallax'') is a species of bird in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Leucippus''. This bird lives in dry forest and scrubland in northern South America where it feed ...
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot