Blue-and-black Tanager

Identificazione

The blue-and-black tanager is an average-sized species for its genus, with an mean length of 13 cm (5.1 in) and mass of 18 g (0.63 oz). It shows slight sexual dimorphism, with females being slightly duller than males. Adult males are mainly cobalt blue with a black mask. The wing and tail feathers are black with blue edges. Subadults are mostly gray, but have black wings, tails, and lores. The bill is very short compared to other species of Tangara. The iris is brown, the bill is black, and the feet are wine gray.<p>The blue-and black tanager may be confused with the masked flowerpiercer, but can be distinguished its brown eye, more extensive black on the wing, and shorter and thicker bill. Populations of the subspecies atrocoerulea may also be confused with the golden-naped tanager, but can be distinguished by their blacker back and lack of cinnamon underparts.<p>The blue-and-black tanager's calls include a thin, high-pitched tsit, a slightly lower swit, a repeated swit-swit-swit, and a hard SWIT-it. The song is 2–3 second long series of rhythmic, high-pitched notes that begin slow and then speed up into a zieeu-zie-zie-zizizizee trill, given every 15 seconds.

Tassonomia

The blue-and-black tanager was first described as Tanagra (Euphone?) vassorii by Auguste Boissonneau in 1840. The generic name Tangara comes from the Tupí word tangara, meaning dancer. The specific name vassorii is in honor of the French collector M. Vassor. Blue-and-black tanager is the official common name designated by the International Ornithologists' Union. Other names for the species include "blue and black tanager" and "blue-black tanager".<p>The blue-and-black tanager is one of 27 species in the genus Tangara. Within the genus, it is part of a species group with the spangle-cheeked tanager, green-naped tanager, and beryl-spangled tanager. In the group, it is sister to the clade formed by the other three species. This placement is supported by mitochondrial DNA evidence.<p>There are three recognized subspecies of the blue-and-black tanager. The subspecies are differentiated mostly by differences in plumage.

Nome scientifico

Tangara vassorii

Autorità

(Boissonneau, 1840)

Ordine

Passeriformi

Famiglia

Thraupidae

Genere

Tangara

Areale e habitat

The blue-and-black tanager is found in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela in the northern and central Andes, at elevations of 1,500–3,500 m (4,900–11,500 ft). It inhabits the highest altitude of any Tangara species, and is the only species from the genus that is found near the tree line. It mostly inhabits montane evergreen forest, dwarf forest, and secondary forest. It also inhabits forest edges, vegetation in clearings, and patches of growth near the tree line. It generally stays in the canopy.

Migrazione

Specie stanziale

Comportamento

Comportamento migratorio: Specie stanziale.

Conservazione

Tendenza della popolazione: in diminuzione.

Tendenza della popolazione

in diminuzione