Short-tailed elves
| Short-tailed elves | ||||||||||
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Short-tailed elf painted by John Gould |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||
| Myrmia | ||||||||||
| Mulsant , 1876 | ||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||
| Myrmia micrura | ||||||||||
| ( Gould , 1854) |
The short-tailed elf ( Myrmia micrura ) is a sailing bird in the hummingbird family (Trochilidae). It occurs in the South American countries Ecuador and Peru . The IUCN classifies the population as Least Concern .
features
The short-tailed elf reaches a body length of about 6 centimeters, with the slightly curved beak about 13 millimeters long. The top of the male is a pale pale green. A white spot in the back of the back extends to the side. The throat shimmers purple and is framed by a white line on the cheek as well as a white chest band that extends to the sides of the neck. The rest of the bottom is white. The very short tail is black, so that the wings tower over it when sitting on a branch. The females are similar but have little to no white patch on the back of their backs. The entire underside is yellowish white. The throat is not colored purple.
distribution and habitat
Their natural habitat is desert scrub, areas with shrubbery and gardens in the dry lowlands of Ecuador and Peru. In Ecuador they occur in the southwest in the province of Manabí on the Isla de la Plata and in the Machalilla National Park . They also occur in the west and south of the province of Guayas , with the distribution area extending south to the province of El Oro and west to the province of Loja . Usually they are found at heights below 200 meters, but in Loja they have been observed up to 800 meters. They are also found in northwestern Peru. Here you can find them in the regions of Piura , Tumbes , Lambayeque and La Libertad .
behavior
They find their food very close to the ground. They often fly to flowers in gardens. The singing during the courtship flight consists of a series of high tititis interspersed with a high swee .
Etymology and history of research
John Gould first described the short-tailed elf under the name Calothorax micrurus . It was not until 1876 that Mulsant added it to the new genus Myrmia .
The generic name is probably derived from the Greek word "murmex" for "ant" ( Greek μύρμηξ / myrmēx ). The reason for the choice of name could be the small size and the industriousness of the hummingbird, which comes very close to the character of an ant.
The specific epithet »micrura« is derived from the Greek words »mikros« for »small« and »oura« for »tail«.
literature
- Thomas Scott Schulenberg, Douglas Forrester Stotz, Daniel Franklin Lane, John Patton O'Neill, Theodore Albert Parker III : Birds of Peru . Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey 2007, ISBN 978-0-7136-8673-9 .
- Robert Sterling Ridgely, Paul J. Greenfield: Birds of Ecuador Field Guide: Status, Distribution, and Taxonomy . tape 1 . Princeton University Press, Princeton 2001, ISBN 0-8014-8720-X (a).
- Robert Sterling Ridgely, Paul J. Greenfield: Birds of Ecuador Field Guide: Field Guide . tape 2 . Princeton University Press, Princeton 2001, ISBN 0-8014-8721-8 (b).
- James A. Jobling: A Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Oxford University Press, Oxford 1991, ISBN 0-19-854634-3 .
Web links
- Myrmia micrura inthe IUCN 2011 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: BirdLife International, 2008. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- BirdLife International: Species Factsheet - Short-tailed Woodstar ( Myrmia micrura ) . Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Short-tailed Woodstar (Myrmia micrura) in the Internet Bird Collection
- Short-tailed elves ( Myrmia micrura ) at Avibase; Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- Myrmia micrura in the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- xeno-canto: Sound recordings - Short-tailed Woodstar ( Myrmia micrura )