Hispaniolan Emerald Riccordia swainsonii Scientific name definitions

This species is probably the commonest of the three resident hummingbirds on Hispaniola, although not necessarily the most widespread. One of its local names is the Zumbador Mediano, in recognition of the fact that this species is midway in size between the larger Antillean Mango (Anthracothorax dominicus) and the smaller Vervain Hummingbird (Mellisuga minima). The male Hispaniolan Emerald appears to be a uniform green hummingbird, with a pinkish lower mandible, while the female has dull grayish underparts, a conspicuous white post-ocular spot and white tail tips. It is mainly found at higher elevations, especially in broadleaf and other forested habitats, rarely below 200 m and as high as at least 1500 m, although some authors have speculated that the species descends to lower altitudes in the post-breeding season (between September and December). The Hispaniolan Emerald lays two white eggs and its cup-shaped nests are placed 1–10 m above the ground. Forest destruction, especially in poverty-stricken Haiti, has undoubtedly precipitated a decline in this hummingbird’s overall population, but it remains reasonably common in the highlands of the neighbouring Dominican Republic.

Male 9·5–10·5 cm, female 8·5–9·5 cm; 2·5–5 g. Male has maxilla black, mandible red, distal third slightly decurved; forehead, crown, and cheeks dull dark brown, rest of upperparts and flanks dark green with some bronze, uppertail-coverts dark green; underparts darker green than upperparts, throat iridescent green with large blackish patch on centre of breast, undertail-coverts dark green; tail deeply forked , dark brown. Female has bill more decurved than male; forehead, crown and cheeks dull dark brown, rest of upperparts and flanks dark green tinged with bronze, upper­tail-coverts dark green; underparts grey , darker on belly and undertail-coverts; outer rectrix basally greyish, with a broad dark brown subterminal band, tipped white, next rectrix basally dark grass green, shading into black, the remaining rectrices green. Juvenile resembles adult female. Female Anthracothorax dominicus is obviously larger than present species, with reddish-brown outer rectrices and darker bill (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ). Female of present species distinguished from same sex of much smaller Mellisuga minima by much longer bill, while Archilochus colubris, which is only a vagrant to Hispaniola, has a darker bill and a smaller white postocular spot (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ).

Considered to be closely related to R. ricordii and R. maugaetus, and all three formerly separated in genus Riccordia. Monotypic.

Hispaniola; erroneously recorded from I de Gonâve.

Dense montane rainforest, shade-coffee plantations (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ), forest edges and scrub, at 300–2500 m, occasionally to sea-level and exceptionally to 3075 m (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ). Forages in low to high strata at 3–18 m.

Sedentary, with at least occasional altitudinal wandering, and those at highest elevations perhaps regularly descend post-breeding and in winter (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ).

Feeds on nectar of flowering Inga vera (3 Wunderle, J.M. and Latta, S.C. (1998). Avian resource use in Dominican shade coffee plantations. Wilson Bull.. 110(2): 271–281. Close ), Heliconia bihai, Rhytidophyllum auriculatum, Caesalpinia pulcherima, Aechmea and Hibiscus. Trap-liner; hawks for insects in the air. Forages up to 14 m above ground (3 Wunderle, J.M. and Latta, S.C. (1998). Avian resource use in Dominican shade coffee plantations. Wilson Bull.. 110(2): 271–281. Close ).

Sharp metallic chipping notes, sometimes given in long series (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ).

Jan (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close )–Jun, but with irregular nesting until at least Aug (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ). Large cup-shaped nest of moss, fern fibres and other plant materials (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ), externally decorated with lichen and bound with cobwebs (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ), often built in low trees or shrubs 0·5–2 (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ) m above ground, once attached to a vine under a bank beside a road (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ), but 30 nests in highlands of SW Dominican Republic were constructed 1–10 m (mean 2·8 m) above ground (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ). Clutch size two white eggs (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ); incubation 15–16 days, by female; chick dark grey with two rows of darkish dorsal down; fledging at 20–22 days (mean date at ten nests in highlands of SW Dominican Republic 16 Jul) (1 Latta, S., Rimmer, C., Keith, A., Wiley, J., Raffaele, H., McFarland, K. and Fernandez, E. (2006). Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Close ). First breeding in second year.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). CITES II. Restricted-range species: present in Hispaniola EBA. Most of its very small range is under threat of deforestation, especially Haitian part of Hispaniola, where now considered locally threatened in Massif del la Selle and Massif del la Hotte, but persists in two protected areas within this country, La Visite National Park and Pic Macaya Biosphere Reserve (2 Keith, A. R., J. W. Wiley, S. C. Latta, and J. A. Ottenwalder (2003). The Birds of Hispaniola. Haiti and the Dominican Republic: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 21. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ). Readily accepts man-made habitats as long as patches of forest remain.