Black-backed Thornbill
Common name: Black-backed Thornbill
Scientific name: Ramphomicron dorsale
Clades: Lesbiini - Coquettes
The Black-backed thornbill is 9 to 10 cm (3.5 to 3.9 in) long. Weighs 3.5 grams (0.12 oz).
The endangered Black-backed Thornbill habitat is shrinking drastically due to extensive deforestation, overgrazing, and fire. They live in humid, elfin forests, bushy slopes near treeline, and páramo. Their foraging occurs at all levels, but they spend much of their time in the canopy, where they gather with other hummingbirds around flowering trees or perch in treetops.
There is a very short, slightly decurved black bill on males; upperparts velvety black with white postocular spot, uppertail covers purplish bronzy on tips; olive-green gorget, dark gray underparts mixed with rufous, and green discs; Tail moderately long, deeply forked, purplish-black with broad outer rectrices. Females are grass-green above, and have white uppertail covers like males, with green discs below; tails are shorter and have white tips on the outer pairs of rectrices.
Endemic to Santa Marta Mountains in N. Colombia.
