Copper thread elf
| Copper thread elf | ||||||||||
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Discosura letitiae |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Discosura letitiae | ||||||||||
| ( Bourcier & Mulsant , 1852) |
The copper thread elf ( Discosura letitiae ) is a little-known species of bird in the hummingbird family . It is only known from the bellows of two males collected before 1852. These hummingbirds, whose place of origin was only very imprecisely given as northeastern Bolivia , still puzzles researchers today. According to researchers, it could be a variety or immature specimen of the discus elf ( Discosura longicauda ), a hybrid, or a species that is believed to be extinct . Until the final clarification about the validity of this taxon , the copper thread elf will be listed by the IUCN in the category DD (data deficient = insufficient data).
The length of the two bellows is given as nine centimeters. The short straight beak is black. The hood is iridescent emerald green. The top is bronze green with a white band over the rump. The throat has an iridescent emerald green pattern. The dark belly is washed out greenish. The flanks are bronze green. The tail is long and forked. The outer control springs are narrow and purple-black. The shafts of all control springs are whitish. Information about the females, way of life, occurrence and habitat is not available.
Etymology and history of research
Jules Bourcier and Étienne Mulsant described the copper thread elf under the name Trochilus Letitiae . The type specimen came from an unspecified area in Bolivia . Later the species was assigned to the genus Discosura . The name "Discosura" is derived from the Greek words "diskos δίσκος " for "plate, disk" and "oura οὐρά " for "tail". The specific epithet »letitiae« was given in honor of Laetitia del Gallo (1848–1864), a granddaughter of Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte . Letititia emerged from the marriage of Bonaparte's daughter Julie Bonaparte (1830-1900) and Alessandro del Gallo, Margrave of Roccagiovine (1826-1892).
literature
- Del Hoyo, J .; Elliot, A. & Sargatal, J. (Editors). (1999). Handbook of the Birds of the World . Volume 5: Barn-Owls to Hummingbirds. Lynx Edicions. ISBN 8487334253
- Gary Russell Graves: Taxonomic notes on hummingbirds (Aves: Trochilidae) 2. Popelairia letitiae (Bourcier & Mulsant, 1852) is a valid species . In: Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington . tape 112 , 1999, pp. 804-812 ( online [accessed April 12, 2014]).
- James A. Jobling: Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm, London 2010, ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4 .
- Jules Bourcier, Étienne Mulsant: Description of the quelques nouvelles espèces d'oiseaux-mouches . In: Annales des sciences physiques et naturelles, d'agriculture et d'industrie (= 2 ). tape 4 , 1852, p. 139-144 ( online [accessed April 12, 2014]).
Web links
- Discosura letitiae in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 30 of 2009.