Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Material on this page was provided by Paul Smith, Sylvia Qu, Sergio Rios, Juan Mazar Barnett,  Alberto Esquivel and Arne Lesterhuis and is used with their permission.
VERSICOLOURED EMERALD Amazilia versicolor
As hummingbirds go the Versioloured Emerald isn´t one of the most colourful. For the most part it is a drab, greenish individual, but if the light catches it at the right angle, blue spangles flash like disco lights on the sides of its breast. The Emerald is a humid forest species, though it looks essentially like the females of many other hummingbirds. They are very variable in plumage, and two colour forms, the white-bellied Amazilia "brevirostris" and green-bellied Amazilia "affinis" have recently been proposed as distinct species in a series of papers by Chebez et al.
Click on the images to enlarge them.
Gallery 1: Typical versicolor
FIGURE 1 - (FPAVE3406PH) Adult showing throat spangles, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith August 2012).
FIGURE 2 - (FPAVE3528PH) Adult, Hernandarias, Departamento Alto Paraná (Sergio Rios August 2012).
FIGURE 3 - (FPAVE3407PH) Adult ventral, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Alberto Esquivel May 2008).
FIGURE 4 - (FPAVE3408PH) Adult ventral, location unknown (Alberto Esquivel undated).
FIGURE 5 - (FPAVE3409PH) Adult, location unknown (Arne Lesterhuis undated).
FIGURE 6 - (FPAVE3410PH) Adult stretching wings, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith April 2010).
FIGURE 7 - (FPAVE3411PH) Adult upperside, Hotel Tirol, Departamento Itapúa (Paul Smith August).
VIDEO - (FPAVE3412VI) Adult, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith April 2010).
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Amazilia versicolor
1 (FPAVE3413RE) Foraging call  recorded PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Alberto Esquivel June 2007).
2 (FPAVE3414RE) Calls  recorded Aguara Ñu, Mbaracayú Biosphere Reserve, Departamento Canindeyú (Juan Mazar Barnett August 1997).
Click the links to hear the call. Longer versions of this call can be downloaded from the Paraguay page of our partner website Xeno-Canto - the largest collection of freely downloadable Neotropical bird calls available online.
WHITE-BELLIED FORM: brevirostris group
This unusual White-bellied form of Amazilia versicolor appeared in Encarnación at the end of August 2007. It differed from the typical form found in Paraguay by its larger size, clearly longer bill, purer white throat and underparts, greener upperparts and white tips to the tail.  Rasmus Boegh has identified this individual as likely belonging to the coastal SE Brazilian form, formerly known as "A.v.brevirostris". Though A.versicolor in Paraguay is strictly associated with Atlantic forest the Brazilian birds are also found in more open and scrubby habitats. The genus Amazilia suffers from a chequered taxonomic history and a series of papers by Chebez et al have attempted to clarify the situation with respect to the forms present in the Southern Cone of South America, identifying two new cryptic species in the process. In their paper "Sobre la Situación Taxónomica de Amazilia brevirostris (Lesson 1829), y su Presencia en la Argentina": Las Ciencias 1: 2008 they raise the form brevirostris to species level. Juan Carlos Chebez has seen these photos and considers that these birds belong to Amazilia brevirostris as defined in his paper.  (Thanks to Rasmus Boegh, Nacho Areta, Mark Pearman, Rob Clay, Juan Carlos Chebez and Joe Tobias).
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FIGURE 1 - (FPAVE3415PH) White-bellied form, Encarnación, Departamento Itapúa (Paul Smith August 2007).
FIGURE 2 - (FPAVE3416PH) Same individual dorsal (Paul Smith August 2007).
FIGURE 3 - (FPAVE3417PH) Same individual ventral showing white tail tips (Paul Smith August 2007).
FIGURE 4 - (FPAVE3418PH) Same individual showing trace of breast band (Paul Smith August 2007).
FIGURE 5 - (FPAVE3419PH) Same individual showing gleaming white throat (Paul Smith August 2007).
VIDEO - (FPAVE3420VI) Same individual perched (Paul Smith August 2007).
Amazilia versicolor "brevirostris group"
1 (FPAVE3421RE) White-bellied form foraging call  recorded Encarnación, Departamento Itapúa (Paul Smith August 2007).
Click the link to hear the call. Longer versions of this call can be downloaded from the Paraguay page of our partner website Xeno-Canto - the largest collection of freely downloadable Neotropical bird calls available online.
GREEN-BELLIED FORM: affinis group
A second, in press paper by Chebez et al deals with a further variation in the Amazilia versicolor complex in which the throat is almost entirely blue-green spangled and there is extensive green on the breast and underparts. The form is provisionally raised to species level in that paper with the name Amazilia affinis pending examination of type specimens. An individual apparently fitting the description of such birds was photographed by Sylvia Qu during June 2008 at San Rafael National Park. Juan Carlos Chebez has seen this photos and considers that it likely belongs to Amazilia affinis as defined in his paper, though he notes that the lack of a red mandible and pale-spotting on the throat are not entirely consistent with an adult bird and are possibly immature characters. He added that further photos would be desirable to confirm the identity. (Mark Pearman and Juan Carlos Chebez). Additional photos of an affinis like specimen were taken by Sergio Rios in Hernandarias during August 2012. Note the very deep blue throat colouration and the contrasting white base colour to belly and vent. It is likely that these birds are the source of reports of Glittering-throated Emerald Amazilia fimbriata in Paraguay.
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FIGURE 1 - (FPAVE3422PH) Green-bellied form, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Sylvia Qu June 2008).
FIGURE 2 - (FPAVE3555PH) Green-bellied form, Hernandarias, Departamento Alto Paraná (Sergio Rios August 2012).
FIGURE 3 - (FPAVE3556PH) Same individual as (FPAVE3555PH) (Sergio Rios August 2012).
FIGURE 4 - (FPAVE3557PH) Same individual as (FPAVE3555PH) (Sergio Rios August 2012).
FIGURE 5 - (FPAVE3558PH) Same individual as (FPAVE3555PH) (Sergio Rios August 2012).
FIGURE 6 - (FPAVE3559PH) Same individual as (FPAVE3555PH) (Sergio Rios August 2012).