About Dacnis cayana (Linnaeus, 1766)
Blue dacnis, Dacnis cayana, measures 12.7 cm long and weighs 13 g. Despite having an alternative name that links it to honeycreepers, it is not actually a honeycreeper, and true honeycreepers have longer bills. Adult males are turquoise blue, with black coloring around the eyes, on the throat, and on the back. Their wings and tail are black, edged with turquoise. Females and immature blue dacnis are mainly green, with a blue head, paler green underparts, and brown wings edged with green. The call of the blue dacnis is a thin tsip. Blue dacnis live in forests and other types of woodland, including gardens and parks. Blue dacnis build bulky cup-shaped nests in trees. Their typical clutch contains two to three whitish eggs marked with grey blotches. The female incubates the eggs, and the male brings food to the incubating female. Blue dacnis are social birds. They feed mainly on insects, which they glean from foliage, flowers, or bromeliads. They often eat fruit, including licorice, Cecropia, Clusia, Miconia, berries, figs, and bananas, and they usually swallow fruit whole. They only rarely consume nectar.
