About Chaetocercus heliodor (Bourcier, 1840)
The gorgeted woodstar (scientific name Chaetocercus heliodor, first described by Bourcier in 1840) measures 5.8 to 6.4 cm (2.3 to 2.5 in) in length. It is the smallest species among woodstars, a group of birds that are collectively some of the smallest birds in the world. Both male and female gorgeted woodstars have a straight black bill. The male of the nominate subspecies is mostly dark metallic blue-green. It has a pinkish purple gorget that stretches across its neck, a grayish line behind the eye, a grayish breast, and white spots on the flanks. Its tail is forked, with very short central feathers and outer feathers that have bare shafts. The upperparts of the nominate subspecies female are bronzy green with a rufous rump. Its underparts are cinnamon-rufous, and its rounded tail is cinnamon with a black bar near the tip. Males of the subspecies C. h. cleavesi are darker than the nominate males, with a less purple gorget and a shorter tail. The nominate subspecies of gorgeted woodstar lives in the Andes, from Venezuela's Mérida state south through Colombia to western Ecuador. C. h. cleavesi is found in the Andes of northeastern Ecuador, between the provinces of Sucumbíos and Morona-Santiago. This species lives in semi-open to open landscapes, including humid forest edges, coffee plantations, and areas with scattered trees and shrubs. It occasionally visits the lower sections of páramo. Its elevation range is between 1,200 and 3,000 m (3,900 and 9,800 ft).
