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Shining Sunbeam Aglaeactis cupripennis Scientific name definitions

Karl-Ludwig Schuchmann and Peter F. D. Boesman
Version: 1.0 — Published March 4, 2020
Text last updated January 1, 1999

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Originally Appeared in

HBW Alive

Introduction

The Shining Sunbeam is a large, dark-brown hummingbird with a lilac-gold iridescent lower back and rump. Like other sunbeams, it has a proportionally short bill for a hummingbird. Found at high altitudes, the Shining Sunbeam inhabits semi-arid montane ridges and cloud forests. Most populations are altitudinal migrants, descending seasonally to lower elevations. The Shining Sunbeam forages mainly on nectar, but will also eat arthropods; males have been known to aggressively defend feeding territories from other hummingbirds. There are currently two described subspecies of the Shining Sunbeam. Neither sex has any white in the plumage, which helps distinguish the Shining Sunbeam from other species in the genus Algaeactis.

Field Identification

12–13 cm; male 7·6–8·1 g, female 6·9–7·5 g. Male has short, straight, black bill; crown and mantle dark brown, lower back to rump iridescent lilac-gold shading to shining silver-green on uppertail-coverts; throat rufous with dusky-grey dots, light buff patches on breast, rufous-brown on belly; rectrices range from dark brown to rufous, and are usually edged bronze. Female similar to male, often with iridescent lilac-golden and green on back reduced, sometimes absent. Juvenile light brown, lacks iridescent colours on back. Within nominate, clinal variation towards south shows increase in brightness of underparts, darkness of crown, and amount of rufous in tail. Race caumatonota iridescent amethyst on rump, uppertail-coverts purplish-amethyst.

Systematics History

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Closely related to A. castelnaudii and perhaps A. aliciae. Morphological variation suggests past gene flow with A. castelnaudii, but nowadays reproductively isolated in the zone of overlap. Occasionally considered to include A. aliciae as a race. Otherwise, up to six races have been accepted, aequatorialis (N & C Ecuador), parvula (S Ecuador, N Peru) and cajabambae and ruficauda (both of NC Peru) replacing one another, but morphometric and plumage characters strongly indicate clinal variation. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies

SUBSPECIES

Aglaeactis cupripennis cupripennis Scientific name definitions

Aglaeactis cupripennis cupripennis
A. c. cupripennis +1

Distribution

all three Andean ranges of Colombia, S through Ecuador and Peru (S to La Libertad and, on E slope, to N Huánuco).
SUBSPECIES

Aglaeactis cupripennis caumatonota Scientific name definitions

Aglaeactis cupripennis caumatonota
A. c. caumatonota

Distribution

C and SC Peru (S La Libertad to Lima and, on E slope, S Huánuco to Cuzco).

Hybridization

Hybrid Records and Media Contributed to eBird

  • Shining x White-tufted Sunbeam (hybrid) Aglaeactis cupripennis x castelnaudii

Distribution

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Habitat

Sub-páramo to open páramo with scattered shrubs and trees, upper cloudforest, semi-arid montane ridges with interspersed trees at 2500–4300 m. Forages from lowest strata to treetops.

Movement

Altitudinal migrant in most parts of Colombia, descending seasonally to lower elevations.

Diet and Foraging

Nectar of flowering terrestrial bromeliads, vines and trees, such as Puya, Bomarea, Fuchsia, Centropogon, Embothrium, Mutisia, Passiflora and Tristerix. Insects are caught in the air by hawking. Male defends feeding territories at nectar-rich flowering stands.

Sounds and Vocal Behavior

Song is a repeated phrase of 3–5 high-pitched chirping notes, “tsip...chew...chew...tseep.....tsip..chew...”, or similar. Calls include similar-sounding squeaky twittering series, single upslurred “suweet” notes and single high-pitched “see” notes.

Breeding

All year round. Mar–Sept (Colombia), Feb–Apr (Ecuador), Nov, Apr (Peru). Cup-shaped compact nest of moss and cobweb, sometimes decorated with pieces of bark, leaf and lichen on outer wall, lined with soft white or brown plant fibre; built on branch or attached to epiphyte near tree tops, 4–10 m above the ground, occasionally up to 15 m. Clutch two white eggs; incubation 16–18 days, by female; chick black with some buff-coloured dorsal down; fledging at 24–27 days. First breeding in second year.

Conservation Status

Conservation status on Birdlife LC Least Concern
Not globally threatened. CITES II. Generally fairly common; accepts a wide range of high Andean habitats including farmland with scattered stands of trees. Occurs in several protected areas throughout its range such as Puracé National Park (Colombia), and Las Cajas National Recreation Area and Podocarpus National Park (Ecuador).
Distribution of the Shining Sunbeam - Range Map
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  • Year-round
  • Migration
  • Breeding
  • Non-Breeding
Distribution of the Shining Sunbeam

eBird and Macaulay Library

Recommended Citation

Schuchmann, K.L. and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Shining Sunbeam (Aglaeactis cupripennis), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.shisun1.01
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