Blue-throated hillstar

Blue-throated hillstar
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Aves
Order:Apodiformes
Family:Trochilidae
Genus:Oreotrochilus
Species: O. cyanolaemus
Binomial name
Oreotrochilus cyanolaemus
Sornoza-Molina, Freile, Nilsson, Krabbe, & Bonaccorso, 2018

The blue-throated hillstar (Oreotrochilus cyanolaemus), also sometimes called the blue-throated star, is a highly endangered species of hummingbird found only in a very small portion of the southwestern Andes in Ecuador. Discovered in 2018, it can be clearly distinguished from other hillstars by the ultramarine color of its iridescent throat.

Distribution

The species is endemic to an area of about 114 km2 where it is found along bush-lined creeks on small ridges not surpassing 3700 m. The range of this species is restricted by the Jubones-León river valley to the north and northeast and the Puyango-Catamayo drainage basin to the south.[1]

Conservation

No more than 750 individuals have been estimated to exist, and this population is highly threatened by fire, grazing, and gold mining.[1][2]

References

  1. 1 2 Sornoza-Molina, Francisco; Freile, Juan F.; Nilsson, Jonas; Krabbe, Niels; Bonaccorso, Elisa (2018-09-26). "A striking, critically endangered, new species of hillstar (Trochilidae: Oreotrochilus) from the southwestern Andes of Ecuador". The Auk. 135 (4): 1146–1171. doi:10.1642/auk-18-58.1. ISSN 0004-8038.
  2. ↑ "New Hummingbird Species Discovered in Ecuador | Biology | Sci-News.com". Breaking Science News | Sci-News.com. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
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