Hispaniolan Mango
Anthracothorax dominicus
Hispaniola’s largest hummingbird. Adult male has a glittering green throat, black underparts, and violet tail. Female is pale gray underneath and reveals a striking orange, black, and white pattern when she spreads her tail. Immature male has a dark, vertical stripe through the center of his underparts. Widespread and found in a variety of habitats including scrub, light woodland, and gardens. Less common in dense forest. Hispaniolan Mango and Puerto Rican Mango used to be considered the same species and were called Antillean Mango.
Identification
Hispaniolan mangoes are 11.5 to 13.5 cm (4.5 to 5.3 in) long; males weigh 6.0 to 8.2 g (0.21 to 0.29 oz) and females 4.0 to 7.0 g (0.14 to 0.25 oz). Adult males have shiny bronze-green upperparts. The chin and throat are metallic green and the rest of the underparts velvety black with a bluish tinge. The tail is mostly violet; the inner webs of the feathers are coppery and the tips blue-black. The female's upperparts are also shiny bronze-green. Its underparts are grayish lightening to pale white on the abdomen. The tail is reddish violet with broad black marks near the end; the outermost feathers have white tips. The juvenile is thought to be like the female but with a black line down the center of the underparts.
Taxonomy
The Hispaniolan mango was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Trochilus dominicus. Linnaeus based his description on the "colibry de S. Domingue" that was described and illustrated by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The type locality is in the Dominican Republic on the island of Hispaniola (and not the island of Dominica). The Antillean mango is now placed in the genus Anthracothorax that was introduced by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie in 1831.<p>From about 1945, some taxonomic systems treated what are now the Hispaniolan mango and the Puerto Rican mango (Anthracothorax aurulentus) as subspecies of the "Antillean mango" under the same binomial, A. dominicus, as the current species. BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) treated the two as separate species as early as 2003 and called A. dominicus the "Hispaniolan mango". The American Ornithological Society (AOS), the International Ornithological Committee (IOC), and the Clements taxonomy followed suit in 2022.
- Scientific name
- Anthracothorax dominicus
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Trochilidae
- Genus
- Anthracothorax
Range and habitat
The Hispaniolan mango is found throughout Hispaniola and several of its small offshore islands. It inhabits a variety of both moist and dry landscapes including clearings, gardens, shade coffee plantations, secondary forest, and coastal shrublands. It occurs generally below 1,500 m (4,900 ft) but is found (though rarely) as high as 2,600 m (8,500 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
- Population trend
- unknown
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Nashville Warbler
Leiothlypis ruficapilla
Small warbler with sharply pointed bill. Look for gray head, white eyering, yellow underparts (including throat), and olive upperparts. Sometimes pumps tail. Two disjunct breeding populations are very similar in appearance. Breeds in coniferous or mixed forests, often near clearings, second-growth, or bogs. In migration and winter, tends to be found in patchy woodland or brushy areas, including field edges and thickets. Winters primarily in Mexico. Listen for its loud chipping song, broken into two parts. Compare dull immature Nashville with Virginia’s Warbler; Nashvilles always have greenish wings. Also sometimes mistaken for larger gray-headed warblers like Mourning or Connecticut, but Nashville is much smaller, shorter-tailed, and sharper-billed.
Northern Royal Albatross
Diomedea sanfordi
Huge albatross of the Southern Ocean; breeds mainly on Chatham Islands in New Zealand, but ranges widely. Especially numerous in Humboldt Current off western South America. Easily separated at a distance from smaller albatrosses by white back. From the Wandering Albatross complex (including Snowy, Tristan, Antipodean, and Amsterdam Albatrosses) by uniformly dark upperwings at all ages with otherwise clean white appearance (including mostly white tail, occasionally with small black markings). This combination of features is never shown by Wandering-types, and Northern Royal never has dirty brownish markings on head and body or a mostly black tail. At close range, note the diagnostic narrow black “lips” on cutting edge of bill, lacking on Wandering-types. Also note slightly longer, thinner bill and shallower forehead, which give Northern Royal a “snoutier” look than Wandering-types. Very similar to Southern Royal Albatross; best separated by uniformly dark upperwings, especially on the leading edge. Youngest Southern Royals can also have dark upperwings with very narrow white leading edge; can require close scrutiny or good photographs to identify with confidence. Range averages further north than Southern Royal, but some overlap.
Bay-backed Shrike
Lanius vittatus
Brightly-colored small shrike, reminiscent of Long-tailed Shrike in overall coloration. Black mask, rufous flanks and back, clean white throat, and small size make it distinctive within its range. Prefers open areas, often in dry regions, with scattered vegetation. Often perches up on exposed snags, fenceposts, or telephone lines. Song is a messy jumble of musical warbles, harsh churrs, and sharp twanging notes. Calls include a harsh “jhiir.”
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.