Tawny-bellied Hermit

Overview

The tawny-bellied hermit (Phaethornis syrmatophorus) is a medium-sized species of hummingbird found in the Andes of South America. It is currently assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, although its population size is unknown and believed to be decreasing.

Identification

• Medium-sized hermit measuring approximately 14 cm in length and weighing 5 to 7 g.
• Olive green upperparts with reddish-orange uppertail coverts in males.
• Long, white central tail feathers and dark tail feathers with bright orange ends.
• Obviously decurved bill, which is more curved in females than in males.

Habitat

Found in the Western, Central, and Eastern Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. It principally inhabits the understory of humid montane forest but is also found at forest edges and in dense secondary forest, typically between 1,000 and 2,300 m in elevation.

Diet

This 'trap-line' feeder visits a circuit of a wide variety of flowering plants for nectar and also consumes small arthropods.

Did you know?

Several males often sing at a lek, producing a continuous series of single, high-pitched, almost insect-like 'tsi' calls.