Frilled Coquette
Lophornis magnificus
Tiny hummingbird that is gray and green above and gray below. Like other coquettes it has a white bar across the rump. Males are astonishingly pretty with an orange crest, a ruff of white and green feathers on the neck, and a red bill with a black tip. Females have a white belly, and spotted throat, lacking the male’s crest and orange bill. Found at forest edges, in second growth habitats and in wooded savanna.
Identification
The frilled coquette is one of the smallest birds alive. It is 7.1 to 7.7 cm (2.8 to 3.0 in) long and weighs an average of 2.66 g (0.094 oz). Both sexes have a short, straight, black-tipped red bill and bronzy green upperparts with a white band across the rump. Adult males of this striking bird have a long, rufous-orange erectile crest and green and white fan-shaped cheek feathers. Its forehead and throat are iridescent green and the rest of the underparts grayish green. Its central tail feathers are bronzy green and the rest rufous with bronzy green tips and edges. The adult female does not have the male's crest or cheek tufts. It has a whitish throat with rufous discs and dark crescents. It underparts are grayish green like the male's, but the tail is overall dark bronze with rufous ends. Juveniles are similar to the adult female.
Taxonomy
The frilled coquette's genus name derives from the Greek words "lophos λοφος"meaning "crest, tuft, forelock" and "ornis ορνις", " meaning bird. The species name "magnificus" is the Latin word for "magnificent, splendid".<p>The frilled coquette is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Lophornis magnificus
- Authority
- (Vieillot, 1817)
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Trochilidae
- Genus
- Lophornis
Range and habitat
The frilled coquette is found in eastern and southern Brazil, from Espírito Santo south to Rio Grande do Sul and west almost to Bolivia and Paraguay. It has occasionally been recorded as far north as Alagoas. It inhabits semi-open to open landscapes such as the edges of humid forest, secondary forest, coffee plantations, gardens, and cerrado. In elevation it ranges from sea level to 1,000 m (3,300 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The frilled coquette makes some seasonal dispersal, apparently after the flowering and nesting season.<p>The frilled coquette feeds on small arthropods and on the nectar of a wide variety of small flowering plants. It catches insects by hawking from a perch 2 to 5 m (7 to 20 ft) above the ground. It defers to larger hummingbirds.<p>The frilled coquette's breeding season spans from August to March. The female makes a cup-shaped nest of plant down and moss decorated with lichens on the outside. It typically places it like a saddle on a branch of a bush or small tree 2 to 5 m (7 to 20 ft) above the ground. The female incubates the clutch of two white eggs; incubation lasts 12 to 13 days and fledging occurs about 20 days after hatch.<p>The frilled coquette is mostly silent. It gives "a short 'tsip'" while feeding. Its wings make "a low bee-like humming" when hovering.
Conservation
- Population trend
- unknown
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
American Pipit
Anthus rubescens
Slender and drab songbird of open country. Usually grayish above and streaked below, but some lack streaks in breeding season. Distinguished from similar-looking (unrelated) sparrows by thin bill and lanky appearance with long legs. Walks on the ground with jerky motions and frequently bobs tail. Flocks are often heard as they pass overhead or flush from a barren field; listen for sharp, high-pitched call notes and look for flashing white outer tail feathers. Song, given from a perch or in flight, is an often impressively lengthy series of repetitive, high-pitched notes.
Velvet Scoter
Melanitta fusca
Large scoter, with distinctive white patch on wing. Dark chocolate-brown overall; males are darker than females and have small white mark under eye. Note bill pattern: mostly yellow with a dark knob on top and a subtle pinkish tip. Females have two rounded white patches on face. Breeds on ponds, lakes, or rivers in woodland or tundra across much of northern Europe. Winters mainly in coastal waters, sometimes in large flocks. Occasionally found on large inland lakes during migration. Dives frequently, feeding on mollusks and crustaceans.
Dorst's Cisticola
Cisticola guinea
Small but strong-billed cisticola that is rufous on the cap and the back of the neck, rich gray-brown on the back, and pale buff below. The back is plain in breeding plumage but has blurry streaks in non-breeding plumage. Note the black band and pale tips across the end of the tail. Found locally in savanna and dry woodland, mostly in the grassy understory. Very similar to Red-pate Cisticola, and best distinguished by song, but also has a duller rufous cap and more buffy underparts, especially the undertail. Also similar to Foxy and Rufous Cisticolas, but larger, with a rufous cap that contrasts with the gray-brown back. The song is a short, high-pitched trill, sometimes followed by several whistled notes.
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