About the Racket-tipped Thorntail
The racket-tipped thorntail, formerly called racket-tailed coquette, is a species of hummingbird in subfamily lesbiinae of family Trochilidae. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
Male racket-tipped thorntails are 10 to 12 cm (3.9 to 4.7 in) long and females about 8 to 10 cm (3.1 to 3.9 in). They weigh about 3 to 3.7 grams (0.11 to 0.13 oz). Both sexes have a short, straight, black bill. Males have an iridescent green crown and mostly bronzy green upperparts with a buffy white band across their rump. Their tail is long and mostly purplish; the outer pair of feathers are much longer and end in a wide blackish "racket". Their throat is iridescent emerald green, their lower breast golden-coppery, and their belly whitish. Voice: As of August 2024 the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Macaulay Library had no recordings of racket-tipped thorntail vocalization. Xeno-canto had only six.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where the Racket-tipped Thorntail lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in France.
When to see the Racket-tipped Thorntail
Peak activity in January · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Black-bellied ThorntailDiscosura langsdorffiThe black-bellied thorntail weighs about 3.2 g (0.11 oz).
Wire-crested ThorntailDiscosura popelairiiThe wire-crested thorntail is one of the smallest birds on Earth, with a mature weight of about 2.5 g (0.088 oz).
Green ThorntailDiscosura conversiiMale green thorntails are about 9.5 to 10.2 cm (3.7 to 4.0 in) long and females about 6.6 to 7.5 cm (2.6 to 3.0 in).
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