I photographed this Sparkling-tailed Hummingbird (Tilmatura dupontii) at Villa Verde, by the entrance to Celaque National Park near Gracias, Lempira, Honduras. Its iridescent plumage stood out against dense foliage. It is found from Mexico to Nicaragua, mostly between 750 and 2,500 meters. It takes nectar at all levels of the vegetation with a slow, bee-like flight, and it also catches insects by flying out from a perch. IUCN lists it as Least Concern. Males measure only about 8 to 10 centimeters, and females have bronze-green upperparts and cinnamon underparts.
I made this frame with a Canon R5 and the RF 800mm f/11 plus the RF 1.4x extender, at 1/3000 sec, f/16, ISO 3200, −1.5 EV. Celaque protects Cerro Las Minas, at 2,849 meters the highest point in Honduras, and its rivers supply water to more than 120 communities, including Gracias.
©2024 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Sparkling-tailed Hummingbird (Tilmatura dupontii) belongs to the family Trochilidae (Hummingbirds) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2022), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List