Bird Guide

Green-crowned Brilliant vs Violet-fronted Brilliant

Green-crowned Brilliant (Heliodoxa jacula)

Green-crowned Brilliant

Heliodoxa jacula

Tiny8 gForest

Male green-crowned brilliants are 12 to 13 cm (4.7 to 5.1 in) long and females 10.5 to 12 g (0.37 to 0.42 oz). One female weighed 7.4 g (0.26 oz). Both sexes of all subspecies have a white spot behind the eye and a forked tail, though that of the female is not as deeply indented as the male's. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a glittering green to blue-green head and breast with a small metallic violet-blue patch on the throat. The upperparts and belly are bronzy green, the vent area white, and the thighs also white. The tail is blue-black. Voice: The green-crowned brilliant makes "a loud and squeaky kyew or tyew call". In Costa Rica, displaying males make "a tseek, tseek, tseek" call. During chases the species makes "loud sputtering notes and squeaks".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Fneskljvnl · CC BY 4.0
Violet-fronted Brilliant (Heliodoxa leadbeateri)

Violet-fronted Brilliant

Heliodoxa leadbeateri

Tiny7 gForest

The violet-fronted brilliant is 11 to 13 cm (4.3 to 5.1 in) long. Males weigh 7.1 to 8.5 g (0.25 to 0.30 oz) and females 6.6 to 7.5 g (0.23 to 0.26 oz). Both sexes have a medium length, almost straight, black bill, a white malar streak, and a small white spot behind the eye. They both have a forked tail but the female's is less deeply indented than the male's. Males of the nominate subspecies have bronzy green upperparts with a glittering blue forehead and a coppery neck. They have a glittering emerald green gorget and a dull bronzy green breast and belly. Voice: What is thought to be the violet-brilliant's song is "a continuous series of single strident 'chup' or 'tchep' notes". It also makes "a repeated, bright, descending phrase 'whee-tsee-tsee-tsew' that sounds like a jerky twittering."

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Ana Agreda, Aves y Conservación · Public domain

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Green-crowned Brilliant and Violet-fronted Brilliant.