Collared Inca
Encyclopedia
The Collared Inca is a species
of hummingbird
found in humid Andean forests from western Venezuela
, through Colombia
and Ecuador
, to Peru
and Bolivia
. It is very distinctive and unique in having a white chest-patch and white on the tail. Like other hummingbirds it takes energy from flower
nectar (especially from bromeliads), while the plant
benefits from the symbiotic relationship by being pollinated. Its protein
source is small arthropods such as insects. It is normally solitary
and can be found at varying heights above the ground, often in the open.
The Gould's Inca
(Coeligena torquata omissa) of southern Peru and Bolivia is normally considered a subspecies
of the Collared Inca, although it has a rufous
(not white) chest-patch.
Apodiformes
, which contains swifts as well as hummingbirds. It is in the family
Trochilidae, that of the hummingbirds, and placed within the subfamily Trochilinae
, the so-called "typical hummingbirds."
features characteristic of that region, and are considered separate subspecies. From north to south along the Andes they are:
. Under most lighting conditions Coeligena torquata torquata appears black except for a very large and distinctive white chest-patch. However in ideal lighting other features can be discerned: a shimmering metallic violet forehead patch in males, white thighs, fleshy-dusky feet, shimmering green throat in males, dull and containing some white in females, and some dark green mixed in with the black of the body. The tail of both genders is black except for white on the basal half of the outer four rectrices, and part of the underside. The female is slightly lighter green overall than the male and has a slightly smaller chest-patch
Vocalizations are infrequent. Quiet, low-pitched, reedy whistle "tu-tee." Longer series of "pip... pip..." Very quiet spitting sound when foraging
.
near the forest edge.
It is fairly common throughout most of its range. No reasons for concern have been claimed.
, meaning that it forages alone by flying a routine route between several flowers.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of hummingbird
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
found in humid Andean forests from western Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, through Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and 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...
. It is very distinctive and unique in having a white chest-patch and white on the tail. Like other hummingbirds it takes energy from flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
nectar (especially from bromeliads), while the plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
benefits from the symbiotic relationship by being pollinated. Its protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
source is small arthropods such as insects. It is normally solitary
Solitary
Solitary is the state of being alone. The term may refer to:* shortened form of solitary confinement in jail* Solitary but social, a type of social organization in biology where individuals forage alone but share sleeping space...
and can be found at varying heights above the ground, often in the open.
The Gould's Inca
Gould's Inca
The Gould's Inca is a species of hummingbird found in humid Andean forest of south-eastern Peru and Bolivia. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Collared Inca, but has a rufous chest-patch...
(Coeligena torquata omissa) of southern Peru and Bolivia is normally considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Collared Inca, although it has a rufous
Rufous
Rufous is a colour that may be described as reddish-brown or brownish-red, as of rust or oxidised iron.The first recorded use of rufous as a colour name in English was in the year 1782....
(not white) chest-patch.
Taxonomy
The Collared Inca is (controversially) placed in the orderOrder (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
Apodiformes
Apodiformes
Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts , the tree swifts , and the hummingbirds . In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodimorphae in which hummingbirds are separated as a new order, Trochiliformes...
, which contains swifts as well as hummingbirds. It is in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Trochilidae, that of the hummingbirds, and placed within the subfamily Trochilinae
Trochilinae
Trochilinae is a subfamily of the hummingbird family . Members of the subfamily Trochilinae are sometimes called typical hummingbirds. They typically display iridescent plumage in metallic reds, oranges, greens and/or blues...
, the so-called "typical hummingbirds."
Subspecies
Collared Incas found in different parts of their range tend to have certain morphologicalMorphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
features characteristic of that region, and are considered separate subspecies. From north to south along the Andes they are:
- Coeligena torquata conradii – Venezuela. Much greener than typical, cinnamon-buffy throat with rufous-brown spots, smaller chest-patch, buffy belly.
- Coeligena torquata torquata – Colombia, east slope of Andes in Ecuador, and part of Peru.
- Coeligena torquata fulgidigula – West slope in Ecuador. Greener than typical. Patch on male's forehead shimmering blue. Male's chin metallic turquoise.
- Coeligena torquata margaretae – Central Amazonas RegionAmazonas RegionAmazonas is a department of northern Peru bordered by Ecuador on the north and west, Cajamarca Department on the west, La Libertad Department on the south, and Loreto Department and San Martín Department on the east. Its capital is the city of Chachapoyas....
of Peru to the Pasco RegionPasco RegionPasco is a region in central Peru. Its capital is Cerro de Pasco.-Political division:The region is divided into 3 provinces , which are composed of 28 districts .-Provinces:...
of Peru. Two-part (shimmering green and blue) forehead patch in male. Female has white and green-spotted chin. - Coeligena torquata insectivora – Pasco Region to the Ayacucho RegionAyacucho RegionAyacucho is a region of Peru, located in the south-central Andes of the country. Its capital is the city of Ayacucho. The region was one of the hardest hit by terrorism during the 1980s during the guerrilla war waged by Shining Path known as the internal conflict in Peru.A referendum was held on...
of Peru. - Coeligena torquata eisenmanni – Within a relatively small area to the northwest of CuscoCuscoCusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, Peru. Both genders have some coppery uppertail coverts. Male has black head except for crown. Female has rufous chin. - Coeligena torquata omissaGould's IncaThe Gould's Inca is a species of hummingbird found in humid Andean forest of south-eastern Peru and Bolivia. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Collared Inca, but has a rufous chest-patch...
– From Cuzco south to the end of the range of the species in Bolivia. Gould's Inca, sometimes considered a separate species, it is certainly the most distinctly different of all the subspecies, having in both genders a completely rufous, rather than white, chest-patch. - Coeligena torquata inca may be an additional subspecies.
Description
10–14 cm (3.9–5.5 in) in length, with a rather long (3 –), straight, black beakBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
. Under most lighting conditions Coeligena torquata torquata appears black except for a very large and distinctive white chest-patch. However in ideal lighting other features can be discerned: a shimmering metallic violet forehead patch in males, white thighs, fleshy-dusky feet, shimmering green throat in males, dull and containing some white in females, and some dark green mixed in with the black of the body. The tail of both genders is black except for white on the basal half of the outer four rectrices, and part of the underside. The female is slightly lighter green overall than the male and has a slightly smaller chest-patch
Vocalizations are infrequent. Quiet, low-pitched, reedy whistle "tu-tee." Longer series of "pip... pip..." Very quiet spitting sound when foraging
Foraging
- Definitions and significance of foraging behavior :Foraging is the act of searching for and exploiting food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce...
.
Distribution and habitat
Humid subtropical and temperate forests, including cloud forests on both slopes of the Andes from Venezuela to Bolivia between 1800 metres (5,905.5 ft) and 3000 metres (9,842.5 ft), usually above 2100 metres (6,889.8 ft) in Ecuador. It typically forages below half the height of the canopy, and can most often be found around thicketsThicket
A thicket is a very dense stand of trees or tall shrubs, often dominated by only one or a few species, to the exclusion of all others. They may be formed by species that shed large amounts of highly viable seeds that are able to germinate in the shelter of the maternal plants.In some conditions the...
near the forest edge.
It is fairly common throughout most of its range. No reasons for concern have been claimed.
Diet
Like other hummingbirds, the Collared Inca obtains most of its energy from nectar, which it drinks while it in turn pollinates the flower, and feeds on insects and other small insect-like arthropods as a source of protein. It seems to prefer epiphytes. It is a solitary trap-linerTrap-lining
Trap-lining or trap line refers to a feeding strategy amongst certain families of birds, notably hummingbirds and woodpeckers. These birds visit a circuit of specific plants, trees, or other feeding sites, much as trappers check their lines of traps....
, meaning that it forages alone by flying a routine route between several flowers.
Breeding
Two single females of other Coeligena species have been observed caring for two offspring each. The nests were 1 – above ground, about 7 centimetres (2.8 in) tall and wide, with an interior cup about 3 centimetres (1.2 in) deep and wide, and were composed of seed down and other materials. The eggs were completely white and measured about 1.5x1cm. The mother visited once or twice every hour, to feed the young for a period of 9–55 s.External links
- Collared Inca videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Range Map from Cornell Ornithology
- Stamps (for EcuadorEcuadorEcuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
) with RangeMap - Photo-Med Res; Article
- Collared Inca photo gallery VIREO
