About Riccordia maugaeus (Audebert & Vieillot, 1801)
Riccordia maugaeus, commonly known as the Puerto Rican emerald, differs in size and appearance between males and females. Males are 8.5 to 9.5 cm (3.3 to 3.7 in) long, while females are 7.5 to 8.5 cm (3.0 to 3.3 in) long. The entire species weighs between 3.4 and 3.8 g (0.12 and 0.13 oz). Both sexes have a small white spot behind the eye. Males have a short straight bill, with a black-tipped red mandible and a black maxilla. A male's forehead and crown are iridescent green, and the rest of its upperparts are dark shining metallic green. Its gorget is iridescent bluish green, and the rest of its underparts are shining green. The male's tail is forked and colored shining steely blue. Females have an all-black bill. A female's forehead and crown are dull dark green, and the rest of its upperparts are shining grass green. Its throat is light gray, which darkens across the belly and undertail coverts. The female's tail is less forked than the male's tail. On the female's outermost pair of tail feathers, the bases are pale white, the centers are brown, and the ends are white. The next pair of feathers moving inward is steel blue, with greenish white bases and a white spot at the end. The next two inward pairs are green on the half closest to the body, and dull brown on the outer half. The central pair of tail feathers is shining green. The Puerto Rican emerald is distributed across the whole of Puerto Rico, its namesake island. It lives in almost all forested landscapes, ranging from coastal mangroves to montane forest on island summits. This includes dry forests, moist forests, plantations, and secondary forest. It can also be found in gardens and urban areas.
