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Hooded Visorbearer
Live sightings near you, the range map, bar charts of when it is seen, and Macaulay Library photos and recordings.
Hooded Visorbearer
Augastes lumachella
The hooded visorbearer (Augastes lumachella) is a small species of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae. Endemic to the east Brazilian state of Bahia, it is found only at higher altitudes in the Chapada Diamantina region. The species is sexually dimorphic.
It resides in the campo rupestre, an arid, high-elevation area characterized by rocky outcrops, poor soils, open habitats, and harsh climatic conditions. There, it feeds primarily on nectar, though it also takes insects. Its breeding ecology remains largely undescribed, though it is known to build its nest from cactus spines. The International Union for Conservation of Nature rates it as a near-threatened species, primarily because of the relatively small size of its range. It is threatened by habitat loss, brought about primarily by unregulated mining and the conversion of the campo to pastureland and human habitation. Climate change is projected to cause a major contraction of its range – perhaps by as much as 90%.
From the article Hooded visorbearer on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
The hooded visorbearer is a small hummingbird, measuring 8.3–10 cm (3.3–3.9 in) in length and weighing 4–4.8 g (0.14–0.17 oz). Its short, straight bill is black. The species is moderately sexually dimorphic. The male is an iridescent bronzy-green color on the upperparts and underparts. His forehead and throat are an iridescent golden-green with a narrow border of bluish-green at the lower edge of the throat. The sides and crown of his head are black, and a thin line of black borders his gorget. He has a narrow white breast band with a golden-orange spot in the center and purplish-brown wings. His tail is a deep bronzy-crimson. The female's coloring is more subdued. She is more bronzy on her upperparts and underparts, and her head is green instead of black. She has a gray face and the sides of her head are brown, rather than black. The green on her throat is less colorful and iridescent than that of the male's, with a stronger border of bluish-green at the lower edge; the color does not extend to her forehead. Immature birds are bronzy-green above and brown below, with a white throat speckled with green. Their tails are a coppery-bronze above and crimson below, less brilliantly-colored than those of adults. The combination of head pattern and tail color is said to make this species "unmistakable" within its small natural range.
Voice. …
Range & habitat
The hooded visorbearer is endemic to eastern Brazil. Found only in the Chapada Diamantina region of Bahia, it is restricted to campo rupestre, a high-elevation ecoregion that is characterized by poor soils, open vegetation, rocky outcrops and harsh climatic conditions. Its occurs at elevations ranging from 900 to 2,000 m (3,000 to 6,600 ft), and is considered to be one of South America's obligate grassland birds. It is found in rocky, semi-arid areas with cactus and low shrubs on the summits of mountains and mesas.
Wikipedia: “Range and habitat”
What it does
Like all hummingbirds, the hooded visorbearer feeds primarily on nectar, though it will also take insects. It typically forages low, often less than 1 m (3 ft 3 in) from the ground. It is known to visit Vriesea flowers early in the day, while the flowers (which are primarily bat-pollinated) still hold some residual nectar.
Wikipedia: “Feeding”
Listen
Looking for field recordings…
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Augastes lumachella in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 6439.