Little Hermits
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Little Hermit (Phaethornis longuemareus) is a hummingbird that is a resident breeder in north-eastern Venezuela, northern Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Trinidad.
This lowland species occurs in various semi-open wooded habitats, e.g. mangrove, secondary forest, plantations and scrub. In Trinidad it also occurs in rainforest.
It is fairly common in most of its range, and therefore listed as Least Concern by BirdLife International.
Previously, several other small hermits were considered subspecies of this species. These are the Stripe-throated Hermit (P. striigularis) of Central America and NW South America, the Minute Hermit (P. idaliae) of SE Brazil and the Black-throated Hermit (P. atrimentalis) of W. Amazonia in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. As presently defined, the Little Hermit is monotypic (a genus consisting of only one species).
Description:
It is among the smallest hummingbirds with a total length of ca. 9 cm. (3½ in) and a weight of 2½-3½ g. (0,08-0,12 oz). It is olive-green above with orange-ochraceous uppertail coverts and underparts (the belly often is greyer). As most other hermits, it has a long decurved bill, elongated central rectrices (= the long flight feathers of the tail) with whitish tips and a blackish mask bordered by a whitish-buff malar (cheek stripe) and supercilium (line above eye). The upper beak is black, the lower is yellow with a black tip.
The male has a slightly darker throat than the female.
Breeding / Nesting:
The males form communal leks (competitive mating displays or dancing grounds) where they sing and flash their tails to attract the females.
The Little Hermit lays two eggs in a conical nest suspended under a large leaf. Incubation and fledging period not reported, but probably as relatives where incubations is 14-16 days, and fledging another 20-23 days.
Call / Vocalization:
The song varies over its range, but typically is high, squeaky, complex and repeated again and again.
Diet / Feeding:
The food of this species is nectar, taken from a wide variety of flowers (e.g. Heliconia), and some small insects. It feeds mainly by trap-lining.
References:
- BirdLife International (2004). Phaethornis longuemareus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern.
- Birds of Venezuela by Hilty, ISBN 0-7136-6418-5.
- ffrench, Richard (1991). A Guide to the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago (2nd edition ed.). Comstock Publishing. ISBN 0-8014-9792-2.
- Hinkelmann, C. (1999). Little Hermit (Phaethornis longuemareus). Pp. 545-546 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. eds (1999). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 5. Barn-owls to Hummingbirds. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. ISBN 84-87334-25-3.
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