Biology:Horned sungem

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Short description: Species of hummingbird


Horned sungem
Horned Sungem, Chapada Diamantini, Bahia Brazil (cropped).jpg
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification edit
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Clade: Strisores
Order: Apodiformes
Family: Trochilidae
Subfamily: Polytminae
Genus: Heliactin
F. Boie, 1831
Species:
H. bilophus
Binomial name
Heliactin bilophus
(Temminck, 1820)
Heliactin bilophus map.svg
Synonyms

The horned sungem (Heliactin bilophus) is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae, the mangoes. It occurs in Bolivia, Brazil , and Suriname.[3]

Taxonomy and systematics

The horned sungem was named as Trochilus bilophus in 1820 by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck. This 1820 account only consisted of a figure plate illustrating a male specimen that was collected in 1816 by the German naturalist Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied in Campos Gerais. In the description of the new species that followed a few years later, Temminck and colleagues argued that the discovery of this species should be attributed to Wied-Neuwied, who was amongst the first travelers to bring specimens to Europe.[4][5] In 1821, Wied-Neuwied published his own description of the species, which he named T. cornutus,[6] but Temminck's name bilophus has priority as it was published one year earlier.[7] In 1831, the German zoologist Friedrich Boie classified the horned sungem within the new genus Heliactin, as Heliactin bilophus, together with three other hummingbird species (today, the horned sungem is recognized as the only member of Heliactin).[3] In 1921, the French naturalist Eugène Simon mistakenly assumed that Temminck's figure plate was published in 1824 instead of in 1820, and consequently considered Wied-Neuwied's name cornutus as the valid one, which was followed in most subsequent publications of the 20th century. The specimen originally illustrated by Temminck in 1820, now considered as the type specimen of the species, is part of the collection of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden.[5]

The specific epithet bilophus, rather than bilopha or bilophum, is correct despite the mismatch between its apparently masculine Latin ending and the feminine one of the genus.[8] "Horned sungem" is the official English common name designated by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU).[3] The species is also known simply as the "sungem".[9]

Within the Trochilidae (the hummingbird family), the horned sungem is a member of the subfamily Polytminae (sometimes informally referred to as the "mangoes").[10][9] Its relationships within this subfamily are unclear, but based on appearance and behavior, it might be related to the genera Heliothryx and Loddigesia.[7]

Description

The horned sungem is 9.5 to 11 cm (3.7 to 4.3 in) long and weighs 1.8 to 2.8 g (0.06 to 0.10 oz). Its bill is straight and black and comparatively short for a hummingbird. The male is recognized as particularly beautiful and spectacular, with iridescent feather tufts ("horns") above the eyes.[7] Each of these tufts consists of a row of six feathers that are fiery red at their base, golden in the middle, and gold green at their tips.[6] The male's crown (the top of the head) is a shiny dark blue to blue green.[6][7] Back and rump bronzy green. The central pair of tail feathers are green and the rest white; the two innermost pairs are very long. The throat, upper breast, and much of the face are black while the neck and belly are white. The female is plainer, without the "horns" or the male's black of the throat, breast, and face. Juveniles resemble females.[7]

Distribution and habitat

The horned sungem is found across much of central Brazil, in the east from southern Maranhão south to São Paulo (state) and then west to western Mato Grosso and into Bolivia's Santa Cruz department. It is also found in a small area of southern Suriname and another in the northern Brazilian state of Amapá, and has been reported outside of its normal range in far western Brazil. It inhabits a variety of semi-open to open landscapes such as gallery forest, woodland, cerrado, grassland, and gardens. Though it is mostly found below 500 m (1,600 ft) of elevation, it occurs as high as 1,000 m (3,300 ft).[7]

Behavior

Movement

File:Sungem.webm The horned sungem is migratory in parts of central and eastern Brazil, where it moves in response to the seasonal flowering of some plants. Though its movement pattern in the southern part of its range is not known in detail, it appears to be sedentary there.[7]

Feeding

As all hummingbirds, the horned sungem feeds primarily on nectar of flowers. This relationship between bird and plant is beneficial for both the hummingbird and the plant, as the hummingbird acts as a pollinator. Some hummingbirds evolved specialized bill shapes adapted to a narrow range of flowers. As a more generalist feeder with a relatively short bill, the sungem forages on a variety of flowering bushes and trees from the lower and middle strata of its habitat.[7][11] When the shape of the flower is incompatible with their bills, some hummingbirds may also act as nectar robbers by piercing the base of a flower to access the nectar, without contributing to pollination. The horned sungem has been reported to rob the flowers of Amphilophium elongatum and Sinningia sp., which might be an important survival strategy in times of food shortages.[12]

The sungem also takes small insects by "hawking" from a perch and sometimes directly from vegetation.[7]

Breeding

The horned sungem's breeding season is mostly from June to October but starts as early as April in some areas. The female alone builds the nest, incubates the eggs, and cares for the young. It makes a tiny cup nest of soft material and spider web decorated with lichen on its outside. It places the nest on a forked branch of a bush, usually about 1 m (3.3 ft) above the ground but sometimes higher. The clutch size is two eggs. The incubation time is about 13 days with fledging 20 to 22 days after hatch.[7]

Vocalization

During chases, the horned sungem makes a "complex twittering comprising squeaky, burry and buzzy notes". Its calls include "a repeated 'tsit' or 'tseet'."[7]

Status

The IUCN has assessed the horned sungem as being of Least Concern. Though its population size is not known it is believed to be increasing.[1] It is locally common, occurs in several protected areas, and uses human-made habitats such as gardens. It also appears to be expanding its range.[7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 BirdLife International (2016). "Horned Sungem Heliactin bilophus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T22688119A93182952. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22688119A93182952.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22688119/93182952. Retrieved 15 December 2021. 
  2. ↑ "Appendices | CITES". https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Gill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P. (July 2021). "IOC World Bird List (v 11.2)". https://www.worldbirdnames.org/. 
  4. ↑ Temminck, C.J. & Laugier de Chartrouse, G.M.J.M. 1821–1838. Nouveau recueil de planches coloriées d’oiseaux, pour servir de suite et de complément aux planches enluminées de Buffon, édition in-folio et in-4° de l’Imprimerie nationale, 1770. Levrault, Paris. Vol. IV. No. 362–480 pp. 1–176. DOI: 10.5962/bhl.title.51468 BHL page 35465192 pl. 18 fig.3, BHL page 35465195 text
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mije, Steven D. van der; Kamminga, Pepijn; Dekker, René W. R. J. (2023). "Type specimens of non-passerines in Naturalis Biodiversity Center (Animalia, Aves)". ZooKeys (1155): 1–311. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1155.98097. ISSN 1313-2970. PMID 38059051. Bibcode: 2023ZooK.1155....1V. https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/98097/. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Wied-Neuwied, M. 1821. Reise nach Brasilien in den Jahren 1815 bis 1817. Frankfurt a.M, Gedruckt und verlegt bey H.L. Brönner, 1820-1821. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.85967
  7. ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 Schuchmann, K.L.; Kirwan, G. M.; Boesman, P. F. D. (December 15, 2021). "Horned Sungem (Heliactin bilophus)". Birds of the World (Cornell Lab of Ornithology). doi:10.2173/bow.horsun2.01. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.horsun2.01. Retrieved December 15, 2021. 
  8. ↑ Remsen, J. V., Jr.; Areta, J. I.; Bonaccorso, E.; Claramunt, S.; Jaramillo, A.; Lane, D. F.; Pacheco, J. F.; Robbins, M. B. et al. (August 24, 2021). "A classification of the bird species of South America. Part 3. Apodiformes". American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline03.htm. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Heliactin bilophus (Horned Sungem) - Avibase". https://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?lang=EN&avibaseid=00B132B43E16AA64. 
  10. ↑ HBW and BirdLife International (2020) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world Version 5. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v5_Dec20.zip [.xls zipped 1 MB] retrieved May 27, 2021
  11. ↑ Bartley, Glenn; Swash, Andy; Melchels, Jeanne (2022). Hummingbirds: a celebration of nature's jewels. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-691-18212-4. 
  12. ↑ Vitorino, B.D.; Frota, A.V.B.; Andrade, A.L.P. (29 December 2016). "Nectar Robbing Behavior of the Horned Sungem Hummingbird (Heliactin bilophus) (Birds: Trochilidae) in Two Species Plant the Genus Amphilophium Kunth (Bignoniaceae) and Sinningia Nees (Gesneriaceae)". Biota Amazônia 6 (4): 104–106. doi:10.18561/2179-5746/biotaamazonia.v6n4p104-106. 

External links

Wikidata ☰ Q774363 entry



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