Brown Inca
Coeligena wilsoni
Drab, long-billed hummingbird of Andean cloud forest in western Ecuador and western Colombia. Brown, bronze, and dull green tones dominate its plumage, but the white patches on the sides of neck shine like beacons in the dark forest that it inhabits. Purple throat patch (reduced in female) is usually inconspicuous. Usually found feeding on tubular flowers inside forest or along the edge, and regularly visits feeders in some areas.
Identification
The brown inca is about 11 to 13 cm (4.3 to 5.1 in) long. Males weigh about 7.0 g (0.25 oz) and females about 6.5 g (0.23 oz). Both sexes have a long, straight, black bill and a white spot behind the eye. Adult males' upperparts are reddish bronze with a greenish olive lower back and a bronzy forked tail. Their underparts are mostly dull brown with an amethyst gorget and a white patch on each side of the breast. Adult females are essentially the same as males but for a longer bill, a smaller gorget, and a less forked tail. Immatures resemble the adult female.
Taxonomy
The brown inca and most other members of genus Coeligena were at one time placed in genus Helianthea but have been in their current placement since the mid-1900s. The brown inca, bronzy inca (C. coeligena), and black inca (C. prunellei) are sister species. The brown inca is monotypic.<p>The species' specific epithet commemorates the American naturalist Thomas Bellerby Wilson.
- Scientific name
- Coeligena wilsoni
- Authority
- (Delattre & Bourcier, 1846)
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Trochilidae
- Genus
- Coeligena
Range and habitat
The brown inca is found on the Pacific slope of the Andes from Colombia's Chocó Department south through Ecuador all the way to Loja Province. It most commonly inhabits the edges of cloudforest and is also found in the forest interior. In elevation it generally ranges from 700 to 1,900 m (2,300 to 6,200 ft). However, it is most common below 1,300 m (4,300 ft)and has been recorded as high as 2,400 m (7,900 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Chunky, medium-sized black-and-white barbet. There is a wide range of geographical variation in the distribution and extent of black and white in the plumage. The tail can be black or white, the wings can be all black or heavily white-spotted, and the underparts can be all white or all black with thin white streaks. Found locally, usually in the vicinity of fig trees, in a variety of habitats including open savanna, gardens, lush woodland, and gallery forest. The calls are a repeated “wheet” and rapid chatters which are usually given together by a group.
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Saltatricula multicolor
Slender, ornate bird found in low, scraggly forest and adjacent overgrown clearings. Handsomely patterned in shades of gray, orange and white, with a black “mutton chop” beard bordered by a white eyebrow. Female and immature are slightly browner than adult male. Song, often given from an exposed perch, is a quick up-and-down series of sweet whistles repeated every few seconds. When not singing, it tends to skulk inside dense vegetation where it is hard to see.
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