Hummingbirds (Trochilidae) as frugivores: a review and the first records from Argentina
Hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are characterized by their specialized nectar-feeding behavior. However, fruit consumption by hummingbirds has been reported as an occasional behavior. I present a review on hummingbird frugivory in the Americas, along with the first records from Argentina. There have been...
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| Formato: | Articulo Comunicacion |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
2019
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| Acceso en línea: | http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/121072 https://journals.sfu.ca/ornneo/index.php/ornneo/article/view/423 |
| Aporte de: |
| Sumario: | Hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are characterized by their specialized nectar-feeding behavior. However, fruit consumption by hummingbirds has been reported as an occasional behavior. I present a review on hummingbird frugivory in the Americas, along with the first records from Argentina. There have been 23 reports on fruit-hummingbird interactions belonging to 15 hummingbird species and 10 plant species, with records ranging from Chile to the United States. Two Gilded Hummingbirds (Hylocharis chrysura) and one Glittering-bellied Emerald (Chlorostilbon lucidus) foraging on blue passionflower (Passiflora caerulea) fruits were observed in northeastern Buenos Aires province, Argentina. Far from being rare events, hummingbirds accounted for a 23% of total bird-fruit interactions at my study area. My results suggest that fruit consumption by hummingbirds has a broad geographic range and may be more common than previously thought, at least in certain plant families, such as Cactaceae. |
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