Collared Inca
Common name: Collared Inca
Scientific name: Coeligena torquata
Clades: Heliantheini - Brilliants
The Collared Inca is 10–14 centimeters (3.9–5.5 in) in length, with a rather long (3–3.5 centimeters (1.2–1.4 in)).
Collared Incas are large, extremely swift fliers that remain below moss-laden moss forests. It is also called the Andean hummingbird. The tail feathers of the male as well as the chest patches of the female are white, which makes a strong contrast to the otherwise dark plumage. Because of its generally dark plumage, it is well hidden in its dark, understory habitat, and its mostly white tail is the first sign of its presence. Long, pendulous, tubular flowers are preferred, which it hovers beneath to feed on. At least temporarily, the Collared Inca seems particularly prone to joining mixed-species foraging flocks of passerines, unlike most other hummingbirds.
5 subspecies:
Collared Inca (Collared)
C. t. torquata
Distribution Andes of northwestern Venezuela (Táchira) through Colombia and eastern Ecuador to northern Peru (eastern Piura).C. t. fulgidigula
Distribution Western slope in Ecuador (south to Chimborazo).
C. t. margaretae
Distribution Eastern slope of Andes of northern Peru (central Amazonas to eastern La Libertad and San Martín).
C. t. insectivora
Distribution Eastern slope in central Peru (Huánuco to Ayacucho).
Collared Inca (Vilcabamba)
5. C. t. eisenmanni
Distribution Southern Peru (Cordillera Vilcabamba).
taken in Colombia
taken in Peru
