HUMMINGBIRDS OF CENTRAL AMERICA

Salvin's  Emerald

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Chlorostilbon Salvin

Males have an emerald green bright crown with copper flashes, a mostly emerald green body plumage, a blue-black forked tail with the inner feathers tipped with dark sooty grey, or no grey tips at all. There is a white spot behind each eye.

Females and juveniles have a white and black line behind each eye, a golden green nape, and upper plumage, pale grey below, and their tails are shorter than the males. They have bluish-green interior tail feathers, and blackish outer tail feathers tipped with white.

Juveniles are similar to the females but are spotted green below.

BILL: dusky red with a black tip in the male and blackish in the female.

SIZE: measures between 2.8 - 3.5 inches.

WEIGHT:  average weight is 2.8 grams.

COLOR: green, blue, gray, white, black, and red.

Topical dry forest, scrub and secondary growth.

NECTAR from plants of the families Rubiaceae, Verbenaceae, and Oenotheraceae.

INSECTS small insects and spiders.

Hovering, sometimes hanging while feeding from flowers.

NEST: deep, cup-shaped nest out of plant fibers woven together and green moss on the outside for camouflage in a protected location in a shrub, bush or tree.

EGGS: 2 white eggs.

Found in Central America, where they have a wide range that stretches through Honduras south through Nicaragua and Costa Rica. They are resident (non-migratory) throughout their range.

The Salvin's Emerald is sometimes considered as a subspecies of the Canivet's or Fork-tailed Emerald.

REFERENCES: https://www.beautyofbirds.com/

                        https://en.wikipedia.org/