Blue-headed Sapphire - BirdForum Opus

Alternative name: Gray's Hummingbird

Male
Photo © by Pitter
Dapa, Valle de Cauca, Colombia, November 2012

Chrysuronia grayi

Hylocharis grayi

Identification

9–11 cm (3½-4¼ in)

• Black-tipped coral bill (male)

Distribution

In South America is found in western Colombia and northern Ecuador.

Taxonomy

Immature
Photo © by olivewarbler
Dapa, Valle, Colombia, March 2008

This is a monotypic species^[1].

Some authorities² consider this species to be conspecific with Humboldt's Sapphire.

Habitat

Forest in Pacific foothills and drier valleys. Cloudforest edges and gardens. Observations at 1700 and 2100 meters on the east slope of the West Andes.

Behaviour

Diet

Mainly nectar from shrubs and trees. Readily visits garden feeders.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Dickinson EC (ed.) 2003. The Howard & Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. 3rd ed. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton, NJ, USA. ISBN 9780691117010
3. SACC proposal to split Humboldt's Sapphire from Blue-headed Sapphire
4. BF Member observations
5. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2016)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Blue-headed Sapphire. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 13 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Blue-headed_Sapphire

External Links

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