Cyanerpes lucidus
The Shining Honeycreeper (*Cyanerpes lucidus*) is a diminutive and dazzling member of the tanager family (Thraupidae), famed for the male's intensely iridescent plumage. Males are a spectacular, almost electric, violet-blue across their body, sharply contrasted by velvety black wings, tail, and a distinctive black mask extending from the lores through the eye. Their bright yellow legs are a prominent field mark. Females, in contrast, sport a vibrant emerald-green plumage, with a paler, someti...
This species primarily inhabits humid tropical and subtropical evergreen forests, forest edges, clearings with scattered trees, and often frequents mature shade coffee plantations. It typically ranges from lowlands up to elevations of about 1500 meters (4900 feet).
The primary diet consists of flower nectar, supplemented by small insects (ants, spiders, beetles, flies) and small, soft-fleshed fruits and berries. They are adept at extracting nectar from tubular flowers with their specialized bills and tongues.
Shining Honeycreepers are diurnal, actively foraging throughout the day from dawn till dusk, often roosting communally or solitarily in dense foliage at night. Their foraging strategy is highly acrobatic, involving precise hovering and hanging upside down to probe flowers for nectar with their sp...
The Shining Honeycreeper is a resident species found throughout much of Central America. Its distribution extends from extreme southern Mexico (primarily Chiapas and Oaxaca) south through the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, reaching western ...
Least Concern
- The male's iridescent blue plumage is not due to pigments, but rather the microscopic structure of its feathers, which reflect light in a way that creates the 'shining' effect. - Despite their common name, 'honeycreepers' in the genus *Cyanerpes* are not related to the Hawaiian honeycreepers or...