Ecuadorian Hillstar

Ecuador and the Andean Hummingbird ( Oreotrochilus chimborazo )

The Ecuador Andes Hummingbird ( Oreotrochilus chimborazo ) or sometimes Chimborazo Hummingbird is a species of bird in the family of hummingbirds ( Trochilidae ). The species has a large distribution area, which covers about 20,000 square kilometers in the South American countries of Colombia and Ecuador. The stock is assessed by the IUCN as endangered not (Least Concern ).

Features

The Ecuador Andes Hummingbird reaches a body length of about 11.5 centimeters. The black, slightly curved beak is about 20 millimeters long. The male is mainly olive green. In this case, it has a purple head having a black band on the chest. The lower part is white with black stripes disordered in the middle. These range down to the belly. The tail is mostly white. Only the central feathers shining blue-green. The outer feathers are slightly darker. On Chimborazo the subspecies is very similar, but the lower part of the pharynx glittering green. The female is somewhat duller appearance. The upper part is dark olive green. Postokular ( behind the eyes ) there is a white spot. The throat is white with green speckles. The rest of the lower part is pale gray to pale yellow, the tail emits blue-green. Only the outer feathers are dotted clearly white.

Habitat

The bird is in spite of its open habitat surprisingly inconspicuous. Frequently we see him only in the brisk air, and he's gone again before he can be located. He sleeps in holes and crevices of embankments. Otherwise, he likes to sit on rocks and on bushes.

Behavior

His feed the bird preferably gets to the orange flowers of chuquiragua plant.

Subspecies

So far, three subspecies are known.

• Oreotrochilus chimborazo chimborazo ( Delattre & Bourcier, 1846)
• Oreotrochilus chimborazo jamesonii Jardine, 1849
• Oreotrochilus chimborazo soderstromi Lonnberg & Rendahl, 1922

The subspecies chimborazo comes, as the name suggests, the volcano Chimborazo and possibly also in the province of Azuay ago. The subspecies is found only on soederstroemi Quilotoa. The most common form jamesonii is native to the mountains of the extreme south of Colombia and northern Ecuador. You can see the ssp. among other things, on Cotacachi, at Pichincha, on Illiniza, the Antisana and Cotopaxi.

Etymology and History of Research

Pierre Adolphe Delattre and Bourcier Jules described the Ecuador Andes Hummingbird under the name Trochilus Chimborazo. The type specimen came from the collection of Edward Wilson (1808-1888), brother of Thomas Bellerby Wilson (1807-1865) and was the volcano Chimborazo collected. Only later did the species of the genus Oreotrochilus been assigned. The " Oreotrochilus " Head off from the Greek words " oros ὄρος " for " mountain " and " trochilus τρόχιλος " for " Hummingbird ". The term " Trochilus ," the Linnaeus 1758 used for a new genus, is historically somewhat problematic. This term has been used by Aristotle for a bird, which then contacts the mouth of a crocodile without getting hurt by this, or even eaten. Étienne Geoffroy Saint- Hilaire suggested that Aristotle so the crocodile monitor ( Pluvianus aegyptius ) described. Nevertheless, has become the norm among scientists to use this term in the context of hummingbirds. The word " chimborazo " refers to the original collection site, the volcano Chimborazo. The word " jamesonii " is a tribute to William Jameson (1796-1873), a Scottish botanist and zoologist, who collected around Quito and William Jardine gave to a box with bellows. With " soderstromi " the Swedish Consul General in Quito Ludovic Soderstrom (1843-1927) was honored.