Alternative name: Blue-throated Hummingbird; Blue-throated Mountaingem
- Lampornis clemenciae
Identification
12cm
- Green upperparts with gold highlights on back
- Grey underparts
- Blue throat in male
- White stripe behind eye
- White malar streak
- White tipped black tail
- Long thin bill.
Distribution
North and Central America
North America: Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas
Central America: Mexico
Vagrant to Alabama, South Carolina.
Taxonomy
Subspecies[1]
There are 3 subspecies:
- L. c. bessophilus:
- Mountains of south-western US (southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico) and north-western Mexico (south to Durango)
- L. c. phasmorus:
- L. c. clemenciae:
- Mountains of eastern and central Mexico(Central Plateau and Sierra Madre Oriental, south to Oaxaca)
Habitat
Shady wooded canyons. Forested mountains to 5,500 feet.
Behaviour
Breeding
The female builds the nest from soft plant fibres, held together with spider silk, exterior covered with green mosses, near water. The clutch of 2 white eggs are incubated for 17 to 19 days; the young fledging at 24 to 26 days. Up to three broods per year are possible.
Diet
The diet includes nectar and insects.
References
- 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/
- Avibase
- Wikipedia
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Blue-throated Mountain-gem. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Blue-throated_Mountain-gem
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
