Rainbow Starfrontlet

Coeligena iris

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernNectarForestCup nestTiny · 7 g

What the Rainbow Starfrontlet sounds like

Sonogram of the Rainbow Starfrontlet: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Niels Krabbe · Flight call · Azuay: upper Yunguilla Valley, Ecuador · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

The rainbow starfrontlet is 12.5 to 14 cm (4.9 to 5.5 in) long. Males weigh 6.7 to 8.8 g (0.24 to 0.31 oz) and females 6 to 8.1 g (0.21 to 0.29 oz). Both sexes have a long, straight, black bill, with the female's being somewhat longer than the male's. Both sexes have a white spot behind the eye. Both sexes also have a forked tail, but the male's is more deeply indented than the female's. The subspecies differ significantly in their plumage. Males of the nominate subspecies have a glittering yellow-green forecrown that transitions through golden yellow to blue on the crown. Voice: During aerial chases, the rainbow starfrontlet makes a "thin, wiry chatter, rising and falling, with rattles and squeaky notes". It also makes "tsit" or "tip" notes.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Rainbow Starfrontlet

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is October, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Rainbow Starfrontlet

Regular range

The map shades 2 countries with regular records. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

About the Rainbow Starfrontlet

The rainbow starfrontlet is a species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Ecuador and Peru.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Side by side: Rainbow Starfrontlet vs Violet-throated Starfrontlet · Rainbow Starfrontlet vs White-tailed Starfrontlet · Blue-throated Starfrontlet vs Rainbow Starfrontlet

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