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- Narrow-tailed Emerald

Narrow-tailed Emerald Chlorostilbon stenurus Scientific name definitions

Ralf Bündgen and Peter F. D. Boesman
Version: 1.0 — Published March 4, 2020
Text last updated July 22, 2014

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Originally Appeared in

HBW Alive

Introduction

These restricted range hummingbirds are not easily distinguished from Short-tailed Emeralds (Chlorostilbon poortmanni), but in Venezuela they are almost always found above the range of the Short-tailed Emerald. When perched, their wings extend all the way to the tail. Since their identification is challenging in the field, these emeralds are not as well known as others. They tend to prefer humid forests, shrubby forester borders, second growth, and low scrub where they are found feeding from flowers with upright or horizontal corollas. They are apparently common above the city of Mérida in Venezuela.

Field Identification

Male 8·5–9 cm, female 7·5–8 cm; 3·2–3·6 g. Male has short, straight, black bill; forehead and crown shining green, upperparts including uppertail-coverts shining grass green; underparts and flanks iridescent green; tail forked, dark green, outer two rectrices very small, stiletto-like, remainder normally shaped. Female has bill slightly decurved; small white streak above and behind eye, and small brown bristles at basal part of bill; crown dull dark green with some bronze, the remaining upperparts and uppertail-coverts dark green; brownish chin, underparts pale white, throat lighter than belly; tail slightly forked, outer two rectrices grey at the base, becoming dark blue with a broad white V-shaped tip, the next innermost are metallic green at the base, shading into brown with a small white V-shaped tip, central rectrices metallic bluish-green. Immature resembles adult female. Race ignotus is smaller, more yellowish-green above, and has duller, darker green tail.

Systematics History

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Closely related to C. poortmani. Very similar to and apparently sympatric with race alice of latter. Race ignotus sometimes considered synonymous with alice, or treated as a hybrid. Birds of Colombia have been separated as race acuticaudus, but regarded as doubtfully valid. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies

SUBSPECIES

Chlorostilbon stenurus stenurus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Andes of NW Venezuela (Trujillo, Mérida, Táchira) and NE Colombia (Norte de Santander, possibly S to W Meta).
SUBSPECIES

Chlorostilbon stenurus ignotus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

N Venezuela (Coastal Range E to Carabobo, S to highlands of extreme SE Lara).

Distribution

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Habitat

Humid forest, low scrub, second growth, at 1000–3000 m. Forages in low to mid-strata at 0·6–4 m.

Movement

Sedentary, with local altitudinal dispersal.

Diet and Foraging

Feeds in rather open areas on nectar of scattered low flowers with horizontal or upright corollas, like Ericaceae, Gesneriaceae, Rubiaceae, Heliconiaceae, or Inga. Trap-liner. Insects are caught in the air by hawking.

Sounds and Vocal Behavior

No information.

Breeding

Sept–Nov. Nest is cup-shaped, built of moss and decorated externally with lichen; in shrubs and lower parts of trees, 1–2 m above the ground. Clutch size 2; incubation 15–16 days, by female; chick darkish grey with two dorsal rows of dark down; fledging at c. 20 days. First breeding in second year.

Conservation Status

Conservation status on Birdlife LC Least Concern
Not globally threatened. CITES II. Restricted-range species: present in Cordillera de Mérida EBA and Colombian East Andes EBA. Common throughout range. Readily accepts man-made habitats. Particularly abundant above city of Mérida.
Distribution of the Narrow-tailed Emerald - Range Map
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  • Year-round
  • Migration
  • Breeding
  • Non-Breeding
Distribution of the Narrow-tailed Emerald

eBird and Macaulay Library

Recommended Citation

Bündgen, R. and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Narrow-tailed Emerald (Chlorostilbon stenurus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.nateme2.01
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