Green-bellied Hummingbird
Saucerottia viridigaster
Plain and often confusing hummingbird found along lower to middle slopes of the Andes. Note its limited range in the eastern Andes of Colombia and the Andes of Venezuela. Plumage is mostly green with rusty-brown rump and tail. Its name is deceptive as the belly is typically brown or buff, not green. Similar to Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, but bill is darker and less red, and rump and tail are browner and less rufous. Inhabits forest edge, clearings, and plantations. Birds found in the Tepui region are now considered a separate species, Copper-tailed Hummingbird.
Identification
The green-bellied hummingbird is 8 to 10.5 cm (3.1 to 4.1 in) long and weighs 4.5 to 6.7 g (0.16 to 0.24 oz). Both sexes of both subspecies have a straight, medium length, blackish bill with a pink to reddish base to the mandible. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a dull golden-green head and back and olive green to brownish rump and uppertail coverts; the last sometimes have a purplish tinge. Their wings are dark purple brown and their tail deep blue to violet blue. Their underparts are a dark shining green becoming grayish brown at the vent. Their undertail coverts are grayish buff with paler edges. Adult females are similar to males with the addition of white fringes on the throat feathers and bronze or brownish edges to the tail feathers. Juveniles resemble females but have grayish brown or brownish gray underparts. Subspecies S. v. iodura has a coppery to purple tail and is otherwise like the nominate.
Taxonomy
The green-bellied hummingbird was formerly placed in the genus Amazilia. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that the genus Amazilia was polyphyletic. In the revised classification to create monophyletic genera, the green-bellied hummingbird was moved by most taxonomic systems to the resurrected genus Saucerottia.<p>The green-bellied hummingbird previously was assigned six subspecies. By early 2023 most taxonomic systems had created the copper-tailed hummingbird (S. cupreicauda) containing four of them. They retain the other two subspecies in the green-bellied, the nominate S. v. viridigaster (Bourcier, 1843) and S. v. iodura (Reichenbach, 1854). However, the South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society does not recognize the copper-tailed hummingbird as a separate species.
- Scientific name
- Saucerottia viridigaster
- Authority
- (Bourcier, 1843)
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Trochilidae
- Genus
- Saucerottia
Range and habitat
Subspecies S. v. viridigaster of the green-bellied hummingbird is found in north-central Colombia on the east slope of the Eastern Andes. S. v. iodura is found in the Andes of western Venezuela. The species inhabits a variety of semi-open to open subtropical landscapes including the edges of gallery forest, plantations, scrub- and brushlands, river islands, and low secondary forest. It mostly occurs on the lower to middle slopes of the Andes at elevations between 400 and 1,700 m (1,300 and 5,600 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The green-bellied hummingbird is basically sedentary but makes local movements to follow the availability of nectar sources.<p>The green-bellied hummingbird's foraging strategy and details of its diet are not well documented. It is known to take nectar from the flowers of Quararibea, Inga, and Erythrina and has been photographed feeding at many other plants. It has been observed in large groups at flowering trees. In addition to necatar it feeds on small arthropods.<p>The green-bellied hummingbird's breeding season appears to span at least from October to January. The one known nest was a cup made of buffy seed down with bits of lichen on the outside and sited on a horizontal tree branch. Nothing else is known about the species' breeding biology. <p>The green-bellied hummingbird's song has been variously described as " a short dainty phrase which is repeated several times...tee-tee-dji-dji or tee-dji-tee-dji" and also as "a waif-like ta-da titi-da". Calls include a "short high-pitched buzzy note...tzree..tzree..tzree..." and a "fast stuttered descending series...TSEe-tsee-tsi-tsi-ti-ti".
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Rufous-tailed Xenops
Microxenops milleri
Small xenops of mature rainforest. Extensively streaked, tan body, with contrasting reddish wings and tail. Has a strong white eyebrow and lacks the bold white mustache of other xenopses. Compared to other xenopses, also has a straighter bill, and shorter tail. Creeps along branches like a nuthatch, often with mixed-species flocks. Fairly rare in most areas; most common in upland areas, but can also be found in seasonally flooded areas in smaller numbers.
Yellow-breasted Racquet-tail
Prioniturus flavicans
A large green parrot with a thin pair of tail rackets, confined to North Sulawesi and satellite islands. Entirely green, except for distinct yellow wash on breast and collar. Males show a small red crown patch. Juveniles lack rackets. Found in pairs and groups in canopy of forests and edges in lowlands and foothills. Prominent yellow breast and large size of this species distinguish it from Golden-mantled Racquet-tail. If rackets are not seen, note the silvery-gray bill, unlike Blue-naped Parrot. Noisy, giving varied vocalizations. Song is a high-pitched “kut-ut-ut-kler-kler.” Also gives screeches, squeaking, piping, and ear-splitting “kraa” notes.
Simeulue Parrot
Psittinus abbotti
Large-headed and short-tailed parrot with a comically bulbous bill, endemic to Simeulue and Siumat. Male is green with a bright orange bill and a powder-blue head and rump. Female is brown-headed with a dark bill. Usually moves in mid-sized flocks through forests and forest edge. Does not sound as cacophonous and unpleasant as many parrots; gives rather musical whistled notes.
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