Blue Dacnis
Encyclopedia
The Blue Dacnis or Turquoise Honeycreeper, Dacnis cayana, is a small passerine
bird
. This member of the tanager
family is found from Nicaragua
to Panama
, on Trinidad
, and in South America
south to Bolivia
and northern Argentina
. It is widespread and often common, especially in parts of its South American range.
It occurs in forests and other woodlands, including gardens and parks. The bulky cup nest is built in a tree and the normal clutch is of two to three grey-blotched whitish eggs. The female incubates the eggs, but is fed by the male.
The Blue Dacnis is 12.7 cm long and weighs 13 g. Despite its alternative name, it is not a honeycreeper
, which are longer-billed. The adult male is turquoise blue with a black around the eyes, and on the throat and back. The wings and tail are black, edged with turquoise. The female and immature are mainly green with a blue head, paler green underparts and green-edged brown wings.
These are social birds which eat mainly insect
s gleaned from foliage, flowers or bromeliads. Fruit is often taken and usually swallowed whole, but nectar is rarely consumed. The Blue Dacnis’s call is a thin tsip.
The Purplish Honeycreeper
(Chlorophanes purpurascens), a bird
from Venezuela known only from the type specimen, is considered to be an intergeneric hybrid between the Green Honeycreeper
and either the Red-legged Honeycreeper
or the Blue Dacnis.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
. This member of the tanager
Tanager
The tanagers comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has an American distribution.There were traditionally about 240 species of tanagers, but the taxonomic treatment of this family's members is currently in a state of flux...
family is found from Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
to Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, on Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, and in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
south to Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. It is widespread and often common, especially in parts of its South American range.
It occurs in forests and other woodlands, including gardens and parks. The bulky cup nest is built in a tree and the normal clutch is of two to three grey-blotched whitish eggs. The female incubates the eggs, but is fed by the male.
The Blue Dacnis is 12.7 cm long and weighs 13 g. Despite its alternative name, it is not a honeycreeper
Honeycreeper
The typical honeycreepers are small birds in the tanager family. They are found in the tropical New World from Mexico south to Brazil.They occur in the forest canopy, and, as the name implies, they are specialist nectar feeders with long curved bills....
, which are longer-billed. The adult male is turquoise blue with a black around the eyes, and on the throat and back. The wings and tail are black, edged with turquoise. The female and immature are mainly green with a blue head, paler green underparts and green-edged brown wings.
These are social birds which eat mainly insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s gleaned from foliage, flowers or bromeliads. Fruit is often taken and usually swallowed whole, but nectar is rarely consumed. The Blue Dacnis’s call is a thin tsip.
The Purplish Honeycreeper
Purplish Honeycreeper
The Purplish Honeycreeper is a bird in the Thraupidae, or Tanager family. It is known only from the type specimen, a trade-skin held in the British Museum, and is thought to be an intergeneric hybrid between the Green Honeycreeper and either the Red-legged Honeycreeper or the Blue Dacnis The...
(Chlorophanes purpurascens), a bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
from Venezuela known only from the type specimen, is considered to be an intergeneric hybrid between the Green Honeycreeper
Green Honeycreeper
The Green Honeycreeper is a small bird in the tanager family. It is found in the tropical New World from southern Mexico south to Brazil, and on Trinidad. It the only member of the genus Chlorophanes...
and either the Red-legged Honeycreeper
Red-legged Honeycreeper
The Red-legged Honeycreeper is a small songbird species in the tanager family . It is found in the tropical New World from southern Mexico south to Peru, Bolivia and central Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, and on Cuba, where possibly introduced.-Description:The Red-legged Honeycreeper is on average...
or the Blue Dacnis.
External links
- Blue Dacnis videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Blue Dacnis photo gallery VIREO
- Photo-High Res; Article geometer—"Birds of Brazil"
- Article, and Write-up:Male and Female Photos fireflyforest.net—"Blue Dacnis"
