Green-headed amazily

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Green-headed amazily
Green-headed amazily illustrated by Louis Victor Bevalet

Green-headed amazily illustrated by Louis Victor Bevalet

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Sailor birds (Apodiformes)
Family : Hummingbirds (Trochilidae)
Genre : Amazilia hummingbirds ( Amazilia )
Type : Green-headed amazily
Scientific name
Amazilia viridifrons
( Elliot, DG , 1871)

The Grünscheitelamazilie ( Amazilia viridifrons ) or Grünstirnamazilie is a species of bird in the family of hummingbirds (Trochilidae). It is endemic to Mexico . The IUCN assesses the population as Least Concern .

features

The green-headed amazilie reaches a body length of about 10 to 11.5 cm with a weight of 5.5 g. The male's red-fleshed, straight, medium-sized bill has a black tip. The top of the head is dark in color, looks blackish from a distance, but glitters from close up from an oily to bluish green. The neck, the back plumage and the sides of the chest are emerald green to bronze green. The rump and the upper tail-coverts are grayish brown to bronze in color. The chin, throat and middle of the abdomen are white. The bronze-green flanks sometimes have pale cinnamon to wine-colored spots. The under tail covers are white, with the middle part often also streaked with cinnamon to wine colored spots. The control feathers are copper to purple with bronze-green edges. The females have a dark green skull. The tail shows less copper tint and is instead colored bronze to golden green. Young animals have pale cinnamon-colored spots on the underside and the tail feathers. The coloring of the skull of male young animals is similar to the appearance of the females.

Behavior and nutrition

They get their nectar from the blossoms of bushes and trees in the middle to upper strata . Their diet also includes smaller insects, which they hunt in flight.

Vocalizations

The call consists of dry chirping and cackling tones. These sound similar to the blue-throated broad-billed hummingbird or the violet -headed hummingbird , but slightly softer than the blue-throated broad-billed hummingbird and a little harder than the violet-headed amazily.

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the green-headed amazilie

The green-headed amazily lives in moderately moist to semi-moist areas, open pine and oak forests , oak bushes and thorn forests. Occasionally they are out and about on the edges of damp forests, riparian forests, parks and gardens. While the nominate form occurs at altitudes between 730 and 1400 meters, the eastern subspecies can also be found at altitudes up to 60 meters.

Reproduction

Data on nest-building and gonadal activity in Oaxaca indicate that they are in breeding mood there from December to February. In Chiapas this is at least the case from April to June. The goblet-like nest consists of plant wool and lichen, which are connected with cobwebs. These build 2 to 3 meters above the ground. The clutch consists of two white eggs, which often appear spotty due to rain washings in connection with nest material. The eggs are hatched by the female.

Subspecies

There are two known subspecies:

  • Amazilia viridifrons viridifrons ( Elliot, DG , 1871) occurs from central Guerrero to western Oaxaca .
  • Amazilia viridifrons villadai Peterson & Navarro , 2000 is common in southeast Oaxaca and Chiapas . The subspecies is very similar to the nominate form , but the seams and spots on the flanks are less pronounced, which makes the underside appear whiter. In addition, the wings and the tail are a little longer, even if there is a clear gender dimorphism when measured . Females have shorter wings and tails, but longer beaks than males.

The names Cyanomyia guerrerensis Godman & Salvin , 1892, Uranomitra derneddei Simon , 1911 and Uranomitra atricapilla Simon , 1911 are now considered synonyms for the nominate form. Amazilia viridifrons rowleyi Howell , 1993, as the cross between Grünscheitelamazilie and Zimtflankenamazilie has been described is probably a synonym for the Zimtflankenamazilie.

The latest genetic investigations between green-headed and violet- headed amazilia indicate that Amazilia villadai must either be regarded as a separate species or that the green- headed amazily is to be regarded as a subspecies of the violet- headed amazily due to gene flow .

migration

The green-headed amazily is considered to be a resident bird , but it shows a tendency to become a line bird . So you can watch train movements at high altitudes when they z. B. migrate to low altitudes after breeding. It is believed that the subspecies A. v. villadai may be found in the far west of Guatemala .

Etymology and history of research

Daniel Giraud Elliot originally described the green- headed amacilia under the name Cyanomyia viridifrons . He gave the Putla district in the state of Oaxaca as the collection point . In 1843 Lesson introduced the new generic name Amazilia for the gold - masked hummingbird , the striped - tailed hummingbird , the cinnamon-bellied hummingbird (syn .: Ornysmia cinnamomea ), the blue-throated star hummingbird (syn .: Ornymia rufula ) and the longuemare sun nymph . He did not mention the rust-bellied amazilia ( Amazilia amazilia ). This name comes from a novel by Jean-François Marmontel , who reported in Les Incas, Ou La Destruction De L'empire Du Pérou, about an Inca heroine named Amazili. Only later was the green-headed amazilie added to the genus. The species name is derived from the Latin word "viridis, virere" for "green, to be green" and "frons, frontis" for "top of the head, forehead". Villadai is dedicated to Manuel María Villada Peimbert (1841–1924).

literature

  • André-Alexander Weller , Guy Maxwell Kirwan, Peter Boesman in: Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal, David Andrew Christie , Eduardo de Juana: Green-fronted Hummingbird (Amazilia viridifrons). In: Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive . Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
  • James A. Jobling: Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm, London 2010, ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4 .
  • Daniel Giraud Elliot: Descriptions of two new species of humming-birds belonging to the genera Eupherusa and Cyanomyia . In: The Annals and magazine of natural history; zoology, botany, and geology being a continuation of the Annals combined with Loudon and Charlesworth's Magazine of Natural History (=  4 ). tape 8 , no. 46 , 1871, pp. 266-267 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • Andrew Townsend Peterson, Adolfo Gerardo Navarro Sigüenza: A New Taxon In The Amazilia Viridifrons (Chordata: Aves: Trochilidae) Complex Of Southern Mexico . In: Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. tape 113 , no. 4 , 2000, pp. 864-870 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • René Primevère Lesson, Prosper Garnot: Voyage autour du monde exécuté par Ordre du Roi, sur la Corvette de Sa Majesté, La Coquille pendant les années 1822, 1823, 1824 et 1825, sous le ministère et conformément aux instructions de SEM Marquis de Clermont- Tonnerre, ministre de la marine; et publié sou les auspices de son excellence Mgr le Cte ​​de Chabrol, ministre de la Marine et des colonies, par ML Dupppery, capitaine de frégate. chevalier de Saint-Louis et membre de la legion d'honaire, commandant de l'expédition (=  zoology . Volume 1 , no. 2 ). Arthus-Bertrand, Paris 1828 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • René Primevère Lesson: Complément à l'histoire naturelle des oiseaux-mouches . In: L'Echo du Monde Savant (=  2 ). tape 10 , no. 32 , 1843, pp. 755-758 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • Frederick DuCane Godman, Osbert Salvin: Aves . In: Biologia Centrali-Americana: zoology, botany and archeology . tape 2 , 1892, p. 1-598 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • Eugène Simon: Note critiques sur les Trochilidés . In: Revue française d'ornithologie (=  Année 3 ). tape 2 , no. 28 , 1911, pp. 129-130 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • Steve NG Howell: A taxonomic review of the green-fronted hummingbird . In: Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club . tape 113 , no. 3 , 1993, p. 179-187 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • Flor Rodríguez ‐ Gómez, Juan Francisco Ornelas: Genetic structuring and secondary contact in the white ‐ chested Amazilia hummingbird species complex . In: Journal of Avian Biology . tape 49 , no. 4 , 2018, p. 1-19 , doi : 10.1111 / jav.01536 .

Web links

Commons : Green-headed Amazilie ( Amazilia viridifrons )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d e f g André-Alexander Weller u. a.
  2. ^ IOC World Bird List Hummingbirds
  3. ^ A b Daniel Giraud Elliot, p. 267.
  4. Andrew Townsend Peterson et al. a., p. 866.
  5. Frederick DuCane Godman et al. a., 290
  6. ^ A b Eugène Simon, 129
  7. Steve NG Howell, 183
  8. Andrew Townsend Peterson et al. a., pp. 865 & 869.
  9. Flor Rodríguez-Gómez et al. a., pp. 1-19.
  10. René Primevère Lesson u. a. (1843), column 757.
  11. René Primevère Lesson u. a. (1827), p. 683 (plate 3).
  12. James A. Jobling, p. 223.
  13. Andrew Townsend Peterson et al. a., p. 868.