Blackhead elf
Blackhead elf | ||||||||||
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Black-headed elf ( Lophornis helenae ) |
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Systematics | ||||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||||
Lophornis helenae | ||||||||||
( Delattre , 1843) |
The black-headed elf ( Lophornis helenae ) is a species of bird from the hummingbird family (Trochilidae). The species has a large range that covers about 250,000 square kilometers in the Central American countries of Belize , Costa Rica , Guatemala , Honduras , Mexico, and Nicaragua . The IUCN assesses the population as Least Concern .
features
Black-headed elves reach a body length of about 7.5 centimeters and a wingspan of about 10 centimeters. The back is bronze green and has a white band just above the tail. This is short and reddish-brown, the central feathers are bronze-colored. The beak is short, straight and reddish with a dark tip. The males wear a green crown with a long, thin, black bonnet. Long, yellowish-brown tufts of feathers sit over the ears. The throat is bright green and the chest has a black, laterally protruding feather comb. The belly is whitish with large copper spots. The females have no headdress. Her cheeks are dark, the throat is yellowish brown with green spots. The tail has a broad, black horizontal stripe on them.
Habitat
The species is found in moist primary and secondary forests as well as in clearings and on the edges of forests .
subspecies
No subspecies are currently recognized. The species is therefore considered to be monotypical .
Etymology and history of research
Adolphe Delattre described the black- headed elf under the name Ornismya Helenæ . He gave Vera Paz in Guatemala as the place of discovery . Only later was the species assigned to the genus Lophornis . "Lophornis" is made up of the Greek words "lophos λόφος " for "crown, forehead" and "ornis όρνις " for "bird". The specific epithet »helenae« was given in honor of Hélène d'Orléans .
literature
- Robert S. Ridgely , John A. Gwynne: A Guide to the Birds of Panama: With Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras . Princeton University Press, Princeton 1992, ISBN 978-0-691-02512-4 .
- Ernest Preston Edwards, Edward Murrell Butler: A field guide to the birds of Mexico and adjacent areas: Belize, Guatemala and El Salvador . 3. Edition. University of Texas Press, Austin 1998, ISBN 978-0-292-72091-6 .
- H. Rappole, Gene W. Blacklock: Birds of Texas: A Field Guide . Texas A&M University Press, College Station 1994, ISBN 978-0-89096-545-0 .
- James A. Jobling: Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm, London 2010, ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4 .
- Adolphe Delattre : Description d'un Oiseau-Mouche noveau, Ornismya Helenæ . In: Revue Zoologique par La Société Cuvierienne . tape 6 , 1843, pp. 133 ( online [accessed March 24, 2014]).
Web links
- Lophornis helenae inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011.2. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2009. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- BirdLife International: Species Factsheet - Black-crested Coquette ( Lophornis helenae ) . Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Black-crested Coquette (Lophornis helenae) in the Internet Bird Collection
- Black-headed elf ( Lophornis helenae ) at Avibase; Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- Lophornis helenae in the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- xeno-canto: Sound recordings - Black-crested Coquette ( Lophornis helenae )