Black-thighed puffleg
{{short description|Species of hummingbird}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2022}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Black-thighed puffleg
| image = Eriocnemis derbyi (Paramero rabihorcado) (15484965256).jpg
| image_upright = 1.2
| status = NT
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status2 = CITES_A2
| status2_system = CITES
| status2_ref = {{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}
| taxon = Eriocnemis derbyi
| authority = (Delattre & Bourcier, 1846)
| synonyms =
Eriocnemis derbianus
| range_map = Eriocnemis derbyi map.svg
}}
The black-thighed puffleg (Eriocnemis derbyi) is a species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Colombia and Ecuador.{{cite web |url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/new/bow/hummingbirds/ |title=Hummingbirds |website=IOC World Bird List |version =v 12.1 |editor-last1=Gill |editor-first1= F. |editor-last2=Donsker|editor-first2=D.|editor-last3=Rasmussen |editor-first3=P. |date=January 2022 |access-date=15 January 2022 }}HBW and BirdLife International (2020) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world Version 5. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v5_Dec20.zip [.xls zipped 1 MB] retrieved 27 May 2021
Taxonomy and systematics
The black-thighed puffleg is monotypic though at one time it was thought to have two subspecies.Heynen, I. and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Black-thighed Puffleg (Eriocnemis derbyi), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.bltpuf1.01 retrieved 13 March 2022
Description
The black-thighed puffleg is about {{convert|10|cm|in|abbr=on}} long. It has a straight blackish bill. Males are mostly shining golden green overall, sometimes with black highlights, and has glittering malachite green upper- and undertail coverts. Their leg puffs are black and the tail is forked and black. Females are similar but have white underparts with green spots, and their leg puffs are a mix of black and grayish white. The female also has a blue tinge to the forehead. Juveniles resemble females.
Distribution and habitat
The black-thighed puffleg is found in the Central Andes of Colombia from Tolima Department and south to Imbabura Province in northwestern Ecuador. It inhabits bushy pastures and the edges of humid forest, and in Colombia has also been recorded in shrubby ravines. It prefers somewhat open landscapes. In elevation it ranges from {{convert|2500|to|3600|m|ft|abbr=on}} and is most common above {{convert|2900|m|ft|abbr=on}}.
Behavior
=Movement=
=Feeding=
=Breeding=
Very little is known about the black-thighed puffleg's breeding phenology. Its nesting season has not been defined but appears to include February. The female incubates the two white eggs; the incubation period and time to fledging are not known.
{{birdsong|url=https://xeno-canto.org/species/Eriocnemis-derbyi |species=black-thighed puffleg}}
=Vocalization=
Status
The IUCN has assessed the black-thighed puffleg as Near Threatened. It has a moderately small range; its population size is not known and believed to be decreasing due to habitat loss. It is considered uncommon to locally common, and "[r]eadily takes to man-made habitats like pastures and gardens".
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1269434}}
Category:Birds of the Colombian Andes