- Euphonia xanthogaster
Identification
9–11 cm (3½-4¼ in)
Male has bright orange-yellow crown and underparts, delineated sharply with rest of body, which is bluish-black. Notice that the throat is black and that the yellow on the crown goes far to the rear. Undertail white. Notched tail, very short bill with curved culmen.
Female is much more drab - brownish/yellow overall, with diffuse orange crown.
Similar species
Male Orange-crowned Euphonia does not have the white flashes in the tail.
Distribution
From Bolivia and Brazil through Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia as well as the Guianas and Venezuela to Panama.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
Photo © by Luis R
Henri Pitier, National Park. Estado Aragua. Venezuela, 11 October 2008
Eleven subspecies are recognized[1]:
- E. x. oressinoma: eastern Panama (Darien) and western Colombia (both slopes of the Western Andes, the west slope of the Central Andes, and, locally, on the west slope of the Eastern Andes)
- E. x. chocoensis: lowlands of western Colombia and northwestern [[Ecuador
- E. x. exsul: Mountains of north-easterb Colombia and northern Venezuela
- E. x. dilutior: Tropical south-easterb Colombia to north-easterb Peru (Ucayali Valley)
- E. x. badissima: Serranía de Perijá (Colombia/Venezuela border), east slope of Eastern Andes of Colombia (south to Boyaca), and Andes of Venezuela
- E. x. brevirostris: East Colombia to Venezuela, Guianas, north-westerb Brazil and eastern Peru
- E. x. quitensis: Tropical and subtropical western Ecuador
- E. x. brunneifrons: South East Peru (Cuzco and Puno)
- E. x. ruficeps: West Bolivia (La Paz and Cochabamba)
- E. x. cyanonota: West Brazil (Rio Juruá and Rio Purús regions)
- E. x. xanthogaster: East Brazil (south to Rio de Janeiro)
Habitat
Moist forest and edges in lowland to about 2100 m asl.
Behaviour
Relatively common bird that readily comes to fruit feeders. In natural habitat searches for food both low and high.
Diet
Their diet consists mostly of fruits and berries. They also eat some insects and spiders.
Breeding
They construct a domed nest with a side entrance from grass and moss.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Orange-bellied Euphonia. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 1 September 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Orange-bellied_Euphonia
