| Black-eared Fairy | |
|---|---|
| male from Cordillera del Cóndor, Ecuador | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Apodiformes |
| Family: | Trochilidae |
| Genus: | Heliothryx |
| Species: | H. auritus |
| Binomial name | |
| Heliothryx auritus (Gmelin, 1788) |
|
The Black-eared Fairy (Heliothryx auritus) is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
A medium-sized tropical hummingbird. It has bright green upperparts, white underparts and a black mask. The relatively short, straight bill is black. The graduated tail is blue-black in the center, with white outer tail feathers (i.e. typically appear blue-black from above, white from below). Depending on subspecies, the male has a green malar or throat. The female is similar, but with a longer tail and no green malar/throat.
Breeds all year around, nest is a cup made of down attached to a branch about 3-30 meter above ground. Clutch size is 2 eggs incubated by female for about 15 days. Young fledge after 23-26 days. First brood in second year.
This hummingbird hawks small insects in the air, as well as gleaning them from foliage. When feeding on nectar, it sometimes pierces a small hole at the base of large flowers, giving access to nectar that otherwise only is accessible to hummingbirds with longer bills.