Blue-naped Chlorophonia
Green organist ( Chlorophonia cyanea )
The Green organist ( Chlorophonia cyanea ) is a passerine bird in the finch family ( Fringillidae ).
Description
The Green organist reaches a length of 11 cm. In the male the head, throat and chest are green. The subspecies northern Venezuela, northern Colombia and the tepuis have a yellow headband. Halter neck and rump are blue colored. The back of the subspecies north of Venezuela and northern Colombia is green, blue for the other sub- species. The belly is yellow, the upper wing-coverts blue-green and green colored tail. The eye ring is pale blue. The female has an ill-defined yellow underside, a largely green top and colored matter. The rump is blue as the male.
The subspecies C. c. frontalis, C. c. minuscula and C. c. psittacina are very similar, the females generally more or less similar.
Occurrence
The Green organist is widely disjunct in Venezuela and Colombia to Bolivia. Other deposits are found in Ecuador, Brazil, Guyana, Argentina, Paraguay and Peru.
The species is found in altitudes 550-2200 m above all in pristine mountain forests. However, plantations and gardens come as a habitat in question. Locally the species is also found in the lowlands.
Way of life
Green organists are very discreet and keep preferably hidden in dense foliage, where they can long remain motionless. The nest usually consists of three eggs.
System
The nominate lives geographically extremely isolated. Provisional seven subspecies are recognized:
- Chlorophonia cyanea cyanea ( Thunberg, 1822) - south-east of Brazil, south to eastern Paraguay and the Misiones Province in northeastern Argentina.
- Chlorophonia cyanea frontalis ( PL Sclater, 1851) - In the mountains of northern Venezuela ( states of Falcón and eastern Lara to Miranda ).
- Chlorophonia cyanea intensa JT Room, 1943 - slopes of the Western Andean provinces of Caldas and Valle del Cauca in Colombia.
- Chlorophonia cyanea longipennis (du Bus de Gisignies, 1855) - Andes of western Venezuela through Colombia, with the exception of the western Andes, Ecuador and Peru to Cochabamba and Santa Cruz West in Bolivia.
- Chlorophonia cyanea minuscula Hellmayr, 1922 - In the mountains of the states of Anzoategui, Monagas and Sucre in northeastern Venezuela.
- Chlorophonia cyanea psittacina Bangs, 1902 - In the mountains of Santa Marta in northern Colombia.
- Chlorophonia cyanea Salvin & Godman roraimae, 1884 - tepuis of the states of Bolívar and Amazonas, southern Venezuela, Guyana to the east and in the mountains in the extreme north- western Brazil.