Turquoise Snatcher
| Turquoise Snatcher | ||||||||||||
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Male and female turquoise snackers |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Cyanerpes cyaneus | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1766) |
The Red-Legged Honeycreeper , even Rotfußhonigsauger ( Cyanerpes cyaneus called) is a small bird art from the family of tanagers (Thraupidae).
description
The turquoise bird grows between 12 and 13 centimeters and weighs up to 14 grams. The slightly curved beak is black. There is a sexual dimorphism . The male's splendid dress is purple-bluish in color. The wings, tail and back are colored black. The legs are red in color. The top of the head is colored turquoise. The underside of the wings, which can only be seen in flight, has a lemon yellow color. After the mating season, the male moults into darker, greenish plumage with black wings. The females and the young birds are greenish in color. The underside of the body is lighter and usually slightly striped. The legs of the females are red-brown, those of the young birds are brown. The song of the turquoise bird is a short "tsip".
distribution
The distribution area of the turquoise bird stretches from southern Mexico to Peru , Bolivia and Brazil . The species was probably introduced in Trinidad and Tobago and Cuba .
habitat
The species inhabits forests and forest edges as well as plantations where it can usually be found in small groups.
nutrition
The turquoise bird feeds mainly on nectar but also on insects and fruits.
Subspecies
- C. c. brevipes ( Cabanis , 1850)
- C. c. carneipes ( Sclater , 1860)
- C. c. cyaneus ( Linnaeus , 1766) - type species
- C. c. dispar room , 1942
- C. c. eximius (Cabanis, 1850)
- C. c. gemmeus Wetmore , 1941
- C. c. gigas Thayer & Bangs , 1905
- C. c. holti Parkes , 1977
- C. c. pacificus Chapman , 1915
- C. c. tobagensis Hellmayr & Seilern , 1914
- C. c. violaceus room, 1942
Reproduction
Turquoise snatchers become sexually mature at around 15 months. The mating season extends from April to June. The female builds a small bowl-shaped nest in a tree. The clutch usually comprises two brown spotted white eggs. The eggs are incubated for 12 to 13 days. The young birds fledge after about 14 days and leave the nest. Turquoise snatchers can live to be over 10 years old.
Danger
The species is listed as "not endangered" in the IUCN Red List .
literature
- Hilty, Steven L., Birds of Venezuela , Christopher Helm, London 2003
- Richard, O'Neill, John Patton & Eckelberry, Don R., A guide to the birds of Trinidad and Tobago (2nd edition), Comstock Publishing, Ithaca, NY 1991