| Chionomesa | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Sapphire-spangled emerald, (Chionomesa lactea) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Clade: | Strisores |
| Order: | Apodiformes |
| Family: | Trochilidae |
| Tribe: | Trochilini |
| Genus: | Chionomesa Simon, 1921 |
| Type species | |
| Ornismya lactea (sapphire-spangled emerald) Lesson, R., 1832 | |
| Species | |
2, see text | |
Chionomesa is a genus of South American hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae.
The genus contains two species: [1]
| Common name | Scientific name and subspecies | Range | Size and ecology | IUCN status and estimated population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glittering-throated emerald | Chionomesa fimbriata (Gmelin, JF,, 1788) Seven subspecies
| Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, the Guianas, Peru, Trinidad and Venezuela | Size: Habitat: Diet: | LC |
| Sapphire-spangled emerald | Chionomesa lactea (Lesson, R.,, 1832) Three subspecies
| Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, and Venezuela; as a vagrant in Argentina | Size: Habitat: Diet: | LC |
These two species were formerly placed in the genus Amazilia . A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that Amazilia was polyphyletic. [2] In the revised classification to create monophyletic genera, these species were moved to the resurrected genus Chionomesa that had been introduced in 1921 by the French naturalist Eugène Simon. [1] [3] [4] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek khiōn meaning "snow" with mesos meaning "middle". [5] The type species was designated as the sapphire-spangled emerald by the American ornithologist Charles Wallace Richmond in 1927. [6] [7]