Bulletin 408 - Colombia 2022 #5 - Hummingbirds Part 3

 I was planning to go to Peru in 2022 but there were riots and road closures in the areas we were planning to go. So at the last minute I went back to Colombia and saw some other places. 

Unfortunately, there was a lot of overlap, so I did not get a lot of new birds on the trip. However, many areas now have set up feeding stations and several were built for photography. I used the same guide Pablo Florez and I had my daughter with me on the trip this year.

However on the bright side, the setups for photography and the number of places that had feeders allowed me to get many improved photos of birds I had not so good photos before.

The 4.3" female Golden-bellied Starfrontlet (Coeligena bonapartei) is a stuuning bird. The male has a solid green throat. This is an endemic bird with the January 2023 split of the Venezuela subspecies into a full species.

Golden-bellied Starfrontlet - female

The 3" male Purple-backed Thornbill (Ramphomocron microrhynchum) has a prurple back and head with green underparts.

Purple-backed Thornbill

The 3.5" Indigo-capped Hummingbird (Saucerottia cyanifrons) is another endemic to Colombia. The male here is bright green with a blue crown.

Indigo-capped Hummingbird - male

The 4.3" male Black-throated Mango (Anthracothorax nigricollis) has a black throat and chest outlined in blue. The rest of the bird is green but the tail is purple.

Black-throated Mango - male

The 3.5" male Crowned Woodnymph (Thalurania colombica) had a bright purple belly and a green throat. Unlike the Golden-bellied Starfrontlet above that was recently split into 2 species, this bird had 2 species - Green-crowned and Violet-crowned Woodnymphs - but they were lumped into just Crowned Woodnymph. 

Crowned Woodnymph - male

The 3.5" male Tourmaline Sunangel (Heliangelus exortis) is a green hummer with a pink throat.

Tourmaline Sunangel - male

The 3" female Tyrian Metaltail (Metallura tyrianthina) is a green hummer with a rusty orange throat. This subspecies have purple tails. The subspecies in the Santa Marta mountains which I photographed last year have blue tails. This is a possible future split.

Tyrian Metaltail - female

Lastly is everyone's favorite, the Sword-billed Hummingbird (Ensifera ensifera). The ID is easy.

Sword-billed Hummingbird

I put the different bird/mammal families in single folders for easy viewing

I have photos of 147 of the 365 species of hummingbirds.

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald

dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2023 David McDonald

To have these trip reports sent to your email, please email me at the above address and ask to subscribe.

Bulletin 393 - Colombia 2021 #10 - Hummingbirds - Pt 2

  I finally made it back to Colombia for my second visit and again used the guide services of Pablo Florez. I went with my friend Martin Jackson. We visited Inirida on the Orinoco, Santa Marta of course, Guajira Peninsula on the Caribbean coast, and a couple of National Parks around Bogota.

There are over 160 species of hummingbirds in Colombia! We saw many species with some rare and endemic ones.

The 4.25" male Blue-throated Starfrontlet (Coeligena helianthea) is a 'fancy one' to quote our guide Pablo. He has a pink belly and blue rump.

Blue-throated Starfrontlet - male

The female is duller with a spotted breast and belly. She has on orange throat.

Blue-throated Starfrontlet - female

Their cousin, the 4.5" White-tailed Starfrontlet (Coeligena phalerata) is endemic to the the Santa Marta mountains. He is green with a conspicuous white tail - an easy ID in that range.

White-tailed Starfrontlet

Woodstars are tiny hummingbirds. The 2.25" male Santa Marta Woodstar (Chaetocercus astreans) is the only woodstar in the Santa Marta range. They sit on top of the trees, so difficult to get a good photo. But he is a green hummer with a red throat and forked tail.

Santa Marta Woodstar - male

The female is buffy below with a square tail.

Santa Marta Woodstar - female

The 2.75" female White-bellied Woodstar (Chaetocercus mulsant) is green backed, mostly white below and rusaty flanks. The male has a purple throat.

White-bellied Woodstar - female

The 3.5" Brown Violetear (Colibri delphinae) is dull brown with the characteristic purple cheek feathers. The sexes are similar.

Brown Violetear

His cousin the 4.75" Sparkling Violetear (Colibri coruscans) is a stunning bird as all his feathers truly sparkle. The sexes are similar. I always enjoy seeing this hummer.

Sparkling Violetear

The 3" male Tyrial Metaltail (Metallura tyrianthina) is green with a bluish throat and reddish tail. 

Tyrial Metaltail - male

The female is paler with an orange throat. However, this is the Santa Marta subspecies (districta).It is a likely split.

Tyrial Metaltail - female Santa Marta ssp

The 3.5" male Crowned Woodnymph (Thalurania colombica)  has a green throat and chest and blue crown, belly and back. A real stunner!.

Crowned Woodnymph - male

The 4.5" male Lazuline Sabrewing (Campylopterus fulcatus) is a green hummer with a blue throat. He has a curved bill.

Lazuline Sabrewing - male

Lastly was a treat - the 3" male Ruby-Topaz Hummingbird (Chyrsolampis mosquitus). This bird has a red head and nape of neck along with  an orange throat. This was a lifer for me.

Ruby-Topaz Hummingbird - male

I put the different bird/mammal families in single folders for easy viewing

I have photos of 136 of the 359 species of hummingbirds.

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald

dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2021 David McDonald

To have these trip reports sent to your email, please email me at the above address and ask to subscribe.