Bird Guide

Band-tailed Barbthroat vs Oasis Hummingbird

Band-tailed Barbthroat (Threnetes ruckeri)

Band-tailed Barbthroat

Threnetes ruckeri

Tiny5 gForest

The band-tailed barbthroat is 10 to 11 cm (3.9 to 4.3 in) long. Males weigh 5.5 to 7 g (0.19 to 0.25 oz) and females 5 to 7 g (0.18 to 0.25 oz).The adult male of the nominate subspecies has bronze-green upperparts, a dark ear patch and chin, and a dusky malar stripe. The tail is dark with white bases and tips to the feathers that create a black band near the end. The throat is ochraceous and the underparts are otherwise gray with some green feathers. It has a nearly straight bill. Voice: The band-tailed barbthroat's song is "a fast high-pitched phrase of some 5–10 notes repeated with intervals of several seconds...e.g. 'tzi-tzi-tsee-ee-tsi-tzi-tzi'." In Costa Rica the Pacific slope population has a more complex song than that of the Caribbean slope birds; it includes trills.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Band-tailed Barbthroat
Recorded by Niels Krabbe · Song · Esmeraldas: Canandé, Ecuador · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Chloe Lynn · CC BY 4.0
Oasis Hummingbird (Rhodopis vesper)

Oasis Hummingbird

Rhodopis vesper

Tiny4 gShrubland

The oasis hummingbird is 11 to 13.5 cm (4.3 to 5.3 in) long and weighs about 4 g (0.14 oz). Both sexes have a long, black, decurved bill. The nominate subspecies is larger and has a longer and stouter bill than the other two, but the three are otherwise alike. Both sexes have olive green upperparts with a cinnamon rump and uppertail coverts. Females have a small white dot behind the eye and males a longer white stripe. Males have an iridescent gorget that ranges from rosy violet to purple with turquoise to the rear. Their underparts are dull white with a dull green wash on the flanks. Voice: The oasis hummingbird's vocalizations have not been extensively recorded. What appears to be its song is "tzee-tzee-dee-dee, first ascending, then descending". Calls include a "melodious series of tick and tzee notes given at variable speeds and tone", "a rapid, thin liquid chatter", and ""a rich chew note".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Jan Ebr · CC BY 4.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Band-tailed Barbthroat and Oasis Hummingbird.