Birds of Venezuela

    PASSERIFORMES: Thraupidae (Tanagers & Allies)  
Genus: Diglossa (10 species, 18 worldwide)

Genus Diglossa, Flowerpiercers, are small tanagers with thin bills with a curved tip used for piercing flowers to extract nectar. Males are generally colorful, while females are often drab shades of brown.


White-sided Flowerpiercer
White-sided Flowerpiercer (Diglossa albilatera albilatera) Male
Rio Blanco Ecological Reserve, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

White-sided Flowerpiercer
White-sided Flowerpiercer (Diglossa albilatera) Female
Rio Blanco Ecological Reserve, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Common flowerpiercer in gardens over 1500m. Look for flashes of white when seen hopping inside flowering bushes piercing flowers.
Acrobatics.
Immature

Bluish Flowerpiercer
Bluish Flowerpiercer (Diglossa caerulescens saturata)
San Sebastian Reserve, Envigado, Antioquia, Colombia
  Bill less hooked than other flowerpiercers.
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Dull blue and black compared to Masked Flowerpiercer. Found inside the forest, and generally not in gardens. Travels in mixed flocks.


Masked Flowerpiercer
Masked Flowerpiercer (Diglossa cyanea cyanea)
Rio Blanco Ecological Reserve, Manizales, Caldas, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Piercing a flower
Eating a berry.

Scaled Flowerpiercer
Scaled Flowerpiercer (Diglossa duidae)
Venezuela  
   
Photograph by David Ascanio - www.abtbirds.com   © All Rights Reserved.

Grey with dark wings, male and female alike (Cornell).

Merida Flowerpiercer
Merida Flowerpiercer (Diglossa gloriosa) ENDEMIC
Sierra de La Culata National Park, Venezuela  
   
Photograph by Margareta Wieser   © All Rights Reserved.


Black Flowerpiercer
Black Flowerpiercer (Diglossa humeralis aterrima)
Cajas National Park, Ecuador  
   
Photograph by Gary L. Clark     Copyright and usage info

Note matte colored compared to slightly larger Glossy Flowerpiercer. If you are not sure, it is probably a Glossy.

Glossy Flowerpiercer
Glossy Flowerpiercer (Diglossa lafresnayii)
PNN Los Nevados, Colombia
  Slightly larger than the Black Flowerpiercer, and shinier. Also compare the bill color to this photo.
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.


Greater Flowerpiercer
Greater Flowerpiercer (Diglossa major)
Venezuela  
   
Photograph by David Ascanio - www.abtbirds.com   © All Rights Reserved.


Rusty Flowerpiercer
Rusty Flowerpiercer (Diglossa sittoides dorbignyi) Male
Finca Alejandria, Cali, Colombia  
   
Photograph by Tom Friedel   © All Rights Reserved.

Rusty Flowerpiercer
Rusty Flowerpiercer (Diglossa sittoides) Female
Colombia  
   
Photograph by Francesco Veronesi     Copyright and usage info

At favorite flowers.

No Image
Venezuelan Flowerpiercer (Diglossa venezuelensis) Endangered ENDEMIC
   




© Tom Friedel - All Rights Reserved, except for images and data otherwise noted.       Colombia       Panama       Ecuador       Costa Rica       Mexico
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