| Copper-rumped hummingbird | |
|---|---|
 | |
| S. t. erythronota,Trinidad | |
_To.jpg) | |
| S. t. tobaci,Tobago | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Clade: | Strisores |
| Order: | Apodiformes |
| Family: | Trochilidae |
| Genus: | Saucerottia |
| Species: | S. tobaci |
| Binomial name | |
| Saucerottia tobaci (Gmelin, 1788) | |
 | |
| Range in green | |
| Synonyms | |
Amazilia tobaci[3] | |
Thecopper-rumped hummingbird (Saucerottia tobaci) is a species ofhummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found inTobago,Trinidad,Venezuela, and possiblyGrenada.[4][3][5]
The copper-rumped hummingbird wasformally described in 1788 by the German naturalistJohann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition ofCarl Linnaeus'sSystema Naturae. He placed it with all the other hummingbirds in thegenusTrochilus and coined thebinomial nameTrochilus tobaci.[6] Gmelin based his description on the "Tobago Humming-Bird" that had been described in 1782 by the English ornithologistJohn Latham in hisA General Synopsis of Birds.[7] The copper-rumped hummingbird was formerly placed in the genusAmazilia. Amolecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that the genusAmazilia waspolyphyletic.[8] In the revised classification to createmonophyletic genera, the copper-rumped hummingbird was moved by most taxonomic systems to the resurrected genusSaucerottia.[9][4][10][5][11] However,BirdLife International'sHandbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) retains it inAmazilia.[3]
The genusSaucerottia had been introduced in 1850 by the French naturalistCharles Lucien Bonaparte.[12][13] The genus name is from the specific epithetsaucerrottei for thesteely-vented hummingbird, thetype species. The epithet was coined in 1846 byAdolphe Delattre andJules Bourcier to honor the French physician and ornithologistAntoine Constant Saucerotte. The specific epithettobaci is from the island ofTobago, thetype locality.[14]
These sevensubspecies of copper-rumped hummingbird are recognised by world-wide taxonomic systems:[4][11][3]
The copper-rumped hummingbird is 9 to 11 cm (3.5 to 4.3 in) long. Males weigh 4.6 to 4.7 g (0.16 to 0.17 oz) and females 3.5 to 4.2 g (0.12 to 0.15 oz). Thenominate subspeciesS. t. tobaci is the largest. Both sexes of all subspecies have a straight, medium length, blackish bill with a pinkish base to themandible. Males ofS. t. tobaci have bronze-green upperparts with purple-red uppertailcoverts. They have dark golden-green underparts with reddish brown undertail coverts. Their tail is purplish black. Adult females are similar though their upperparts are a less intense bronze-green and they have some whitish on the chin and upper throat. Juveniles resemble females but have some grayish brown on the throat and belly.[15]
SubspeciesS. t. monticola is darker than the nominate and has a steel blue to violet-blue tail.S. t. feliciae's back is more of a golden-green than the nominate's and its tail is bluish black.S. t. caudata has a dark blue tail.S. t. aliciae has some copper in its upperparts, a blue-black tail, and cinnamon-rufous undertail coverts.S. t. erythronotos has slightly darker underparts than the nominate and some dark purplish in the uppertail coverts.S. t. caurensis has a grayer rump and uppertail coverts than the nominate, a dark purplish tail, and bluish black undertail coverts.[15]
The subspecies of copper-rumped hummingbird are found thus:[4][15]
Specimens of this species labeled as fromGrenada are believed to have been actually collected on Tobago, and "the occurrence of the species in the Lesser Antilles is doubtful."[5]
The copper-rumped hummingbird inhabits a wide variety of forest types includinggallery forest,cloudforest,rainforest, andsecondary forest.S. t. erythronotos andS. t. tobaci are also found in savanna, plantations, and gardens. Most subspecies range in elevation from sea level to 1,000 m (3,300 ft) thoughmonticola andfeliciae can be found as high as 2,000 m (6,600 ft) andaliciae is seldom found at low elevation.[15]
The island subspecies of copper-rumped hummingbird are sedentary; the mainland ones make some local movements.[15]
The copper-rumped hummingbird forages for nectar from at least 40 species of trees, vines, herbs, and other plants including introduced species. It is extremely territorial and vigorously defends feeding areas from other birds, even larger ones. In addition to nectar it feeds on small insects byhawking from a perch or by gleaning from vegetation.[15]
The copper-rumped hummingbird's breeding season on Trinidad is almost year-round, excluding only September and October; its peak is from January to March. On Tobago it spans at least from November to June. The breeding seasons of mainland subspecies are essentially unknown. The species builds a nest of silky plant down with lichen on the outside. It places it like a saddle in a fork or on a small branch, usually between 1 and 3 m (3 and 10 ft) above the ground but occasionally as high as 6 m (20 ft). Nests have also been found on wires and clotheslines. The female incubates the clutch of two eggs for 16 to 19 days and fledging occurs 19 to 23 days after hatch. Up to three broods may be produced each season.[15]
| Songs and calls |
The copper-rumped hummingbird's song is "a repeated phrase of three buzzy or squeaky, well-spaced notes 'tee-dee-dew' or 'tee-dzee-djit'." It also makes "high-pitched descending rattles" when foraging.[15]
TheIUCN has assessed the copper-rumped hummingbird as being of Least Concern, though its population size and trend are unknown. It has a large range and no immediate threats have been identified.[1] Those on Trinidad and Tobago and the mainland subspeciesS. t. feliciae andS. t. caudata are considered common to very common. The other subspecies appear to be more scattered, though this might be due to incomplete data.[15]
