Lucifer star hummingbird

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Lucifer star hummingbird
Lucifer star hummingbird ♀

Lucifer star hummingbird ♀

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Sailor birds (Apodiformes)
Family : Hummingbirds (Trochilidae)
Subfamily : Bees (Mellisugini)
Genre : Calothorax
Type : Lucifer star hummingbird
Scientific name
Calothorax lucifer
( Swainson , 1827)

The Lucifer Hummingbird Star ( Calothorax lucifer ) is a species of bird in the family of hummingbirds (Trochilidae). The range of this species includes parts of the United States and Mexico . The IUCN assesses the population as Least Concern .

features

Lucifer star hummingbird ♂

The Lucifer star hummingbird reaches a body length of approx. 9 to 10 cm and a weight of approx. 2.9 to 3.5 g. This medium-sized species of hummingbird has a long curved black beak. Both sexes are green on the top. The males are only dull green on the front skull. The large iridescent collar tab reflects a purple-pink to magenta-colored shimmer that is slightly elongated at the sides. This is lined with white on the sides and in the lower area. The rest of the underside is green with small reddish brown spots on the lower flanks. The tail is forked long, the outer control feathers particularly long, black and narrow. These taper to a point in the end. The inner control springs are short and green. The underside of the female is pale yellow-brown to cinnamon in color. The middle of the abdomen is white. The sides of the chest often have small green spots. The tail is double-lobed. The inner control springs are green, the outer flag is cinnamon-colored. The rest blackish with white spots. Fledglings resemble females in appearance, but males develop some color on their throats in summer.

Behavior and nutrition

The Lucifer star hummingbird gets its nectar from different plants. In Texas it is mostly on red-blooming herbs and bushes such as the species Penstemon havardii belonging to the beard thread , the species Castilleja lanata belonging to the Castilleja or the species Anisacanthus linearis belonging to the acanthus family . In midsummer they get their food from the yellow blooming agave havardiana , provided that it has not already been harvested by bats , pigeons or trupials . In Mexico City they were observed on reddish plants of the Bouvardia caracasana species , on real coral trees , on opuntia , on the species Salvia mexicana belonging to the sage , on miracle flowers and the species Manfreda brachystachya belonging to the agaves . Little is known which plants they use in winter and during migration . In flight they catch smaller flying insects, which they pounce on from their seats.

Vocalizations

The males' courtship flight starts with them approaching the females. They swing back and forth horizontally to the female about 2 meters away. This is followed by an ascent to heights of up to 35 meters with a sudden dive right in front of the courted. During the first approach, the wings and tail emit a fluttering sound that sounds differently like wack-wack-wack when the tail is spread . The singing while eating and hovering contains a series of muffled chip sounds. These are often ejected two to three times. They also emit a weak, bright -sounding and lively brtsi-brtsi . During car chases, they emit a bright, squeaky chirping. In flight, the flapping of its wings sounds like a bee, but floating like a bright squeaky shaking.

Reproduction

In Texas, the breeding season is from April to August, but can also be delayed in May or June if the summer rains begin. In Mexico City, they breed from May to September. The nests sometimes pile up so that up to five can be found within a radius of 200 meters. For nest building, they prefer rocky slopes with little vegetation, which are located near lush watercourses on gorges. Nevertheless, they almost never use vegetation near the shore. They often use knapweeds such as Centaurea mexicana or Mexican prickly poppies to build their nests in Texas . The females take a week to build a goblet-like nest. In doing so, they collect cotton-like material, smaller leaves and flower heads and fasten them with cobwebs. A clutch consists of two eggs that are laid within two days. The breeding season lasts about 15 days and is carried out by the female. The chicks are naked except for the back for the first nine days. Stubble feathers grow in around 10 to 12 days. The time until they fledge takes between 19 and 24 days. The young stay close to the nest for 2 to 3 weeks. Often they sit in the shade of thick bushes and continue to be fed by the female. In Mexico City there can be up to two annual broods, in Texas probably less due to a lack of flowers as a food supply.

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the Lucifer star hummingbird

The Lucifer Star Hummingbird prefers to live in dry scrub, in ravines and on lower mountain slopes. In the north of the Chihuahua Desert you can meet him mainly in the gorges and the mountain foothills and less on open slopes. Near Mexico City, it is often found at rather low altitudes around 2200 meters in cultivation areas, on the plains and on volcanic mountains. In winter they are usually present below 1800 meters, but not in coastal areas. Their typical habitat includes thorn forests, tropical deciduous forests and dry subtropical scrub.

migration

The breeding populations near Mexico City and along the US-Mexico border are considered migratory birds. The migration behavior of inhabitants of the eastern foothills of the Sierra Madre Occidental and the central Chihuahua Desert is not known. In the north, the birds arrive in early April and leave the area in September. In Mexico City, they arrive from March to April and disappear again from October to November. Nothing is known about the birds' destinations, but many specimens overwinter in the interior of central and southwestern Mexico at altitudes between 800 and 1,800 meters. Here they occur in Jalisco , Guanajuato , Querétaro south to Guerrero and Oaxaca . Occasionally you can see them west to Sinaloa . In the Sierra de Manantlán you are a summer visitor from May to June. Specimens were very rarely found in southern Arizona from April to August .

Subspecies

The species is considered to be monotypical .

Etymology and history of research

William Swainson described the Lucifer star hummingbird under the name Cynanthus Lucifer . The type specimen came from the table mountains near Temascaltepec and was collected by William Bullock and his son William Bullock, Junior . In 1840 George Robert Gray introduced the genus Calothorax a . a. for the Lucifer Star Hummingbird. The term "calothorax" is derived from the Greek words "calos καλος " for "beautiful, beautiful" and "thōrakos θωρακος " for "breastplate". The name "lucifer" is a Latin word formation from "lux, lucis" for "light" and "-fera, ferre" for "-bearing, to carry".

literature

  • Peter Evans Scott, Peter Boesman in: Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal, David Andrew Christie , Eduardo de Juana: Lucifer Hummingbird (Calothorax lucifer). 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 .
  • William Swainson: A Synopsis of the Birds discovered in Mexico by W. Bullock, FLS and HS, and Mr. William Bullock, jun. In: The Philosophical magazine: or Annals of chemistry, mathematics, astronomy, natural history and general science . tape 1 , no. 85 , 1827, pp. 433-442 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • George Robert Gray: A list of the genera of birds: with their synonyma an indication of the typical species of each genus / compiled from various source . R. and JE Taylor, London 1840 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
  • René Primevère Lesson: Histoire naturelle des oiseaux-mouches, ouvrage orné de planches desinées et gravée par les meilleurs artistes et dédié A SAR Mademoiselle 81 plates (Jean-Gabriel Prêtre, Antoine Germaine Bévalet, Marie Clémence Vhier, Antoine Charles Vieillotaut, after William Swainson, Pancrace Bessa, Elisa Zoé Dumont de Sainte Croix) . Arthus Bertrand, Paris ( biodiversitylibrary.org - 1829-1830).
  • Les Trochilidées ou les Colibris et Les Oiseaux-Mouches Suivis d'un index général dans lequel sont décrites et classées méthodiquement toutes les races et espèces du genere Trochilus. Ouvrage orné de planches dessinées et gravées par les meilleurs artistes 66 plates (Prêtre, Antoine Germaine Bévalet) . Arthus Bertrand, Paris ( biodiversitylibrary.org - 1832-1833).

Web links

Commons : Lucifer star hummingbird ( Calothorax lucifer )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Peter Evans Scott u. a.
  2. ^ IOC World Bird List Hummingbirds
  3. ^ William Swainson, p. 442.
  4. ↑ George Robert Gray, p. 18.
  5. ↑ James A. Jobling, p. 86.
  6. ↑ James A. Jobling, p. 232.

Remarks

  1. ↑ He also classified L'Oiseau-Mouche Barbe-Bleue ( Ornismya cyabopogon Lesson, RP , 1829). In 1832 Lesson named a genus Les Lucifers .