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Green Violet-ear

Colibri thalassinusOrder: APODIFORMESFamily: Hummingbirds (Trochilidae)

Green Violet-ear Breeding Male Portrait
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General

Green Violet-ear: Medium-sized hummingbird, mostly dark metallic green (appearing black in low light) with blue-violet cheek and breast patches. Wings have black primaries. Squared tail is blue-green with black band. Slightly decurved bill is black. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Green Violet-ear: Found in mountain forests, forest clearings, and forest edges; common from central Mexico southward into northern South America. Vagrants may show up almost anywhere, with numerous records from the eastern U.S. and as far north as Alberta and Ontario.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"tsip-tsip", "t'iiiiissk, t'iiiiissk, t'iiiiissk"

Interesting Facts

  • The Green Violet-ear has a large violet central breast spot on the upper breast and a violet-blue band along the chin that often connects to the the violet-blue "ear," giving the bird its name.
  • This tropical species breeds from Mexico south to Bolivia and can be found at elevations as high as 13,000 feet.
  • A group of hummingbirds has many collective nouns, including a “bouquet", "glittering", "hover", "shimmer", and "tune” of hummingbirds.


Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for Green Violet-ear
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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family
Species Colibri thalassinus
Length4 Inches
Wingspan5.5 Inches

Green Violet-ear

Green Violet-ear: Medium hummingbird, dark metallic green (appearing black in low light) with blue-violet cheek and breast patches. Wings have black primaries. Squared tail is blue-green with black band. Slightly decurved bill is black. Direct, hovering flight with rapid wing beats.

● Song: "tsip-tsip", "t'iiiiissk, t'iiiiissk, t'iiiiissk"

● Foraging & Feeding: Green Violet-ear: Feeds high to low in vegetation on nectar and insects.

● Breeding & nesting: Green Violet-ear: Two white eggs are laid in a nest made of down, dry grass blades, and mosses bound with cobwebs and decorated with moss and lichens. Nest is built by the female and built on drooping twig or rootlet at a forest edge, stream bank, or an overhanging road bank. Incubation ranges from 14 to 18 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Green Violet-ear: Blue-throated Hummingbird is larger, has blue throat, white tips on tail feathers, and two white lines on face.

Flight Pattern

Direct and hovering flight with very rapid wing beats.
Green Violet-ear Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Green Violet-ear: Found in mountain forests, forest clearings, and forest edges; common from central Mexico southward into northern South America. Vagrants may show up almost anywhere, with numerous records from the eastern U.S. and as far north as Alberta and Ontario.
BreedingSolitary nester
PopulationAccidental to casual
MigrationNonmigratory
Weight0.2 Ounces