Tufted Coquette

Sightings
The adult male Tufted Coquette was a regular sighting from the main verandah of the Asa Wright Centre in Trinidad. It is a minute bird of incredible beauty which does not visit the feeders but tends to feed on a few specific bushes. One of the guides found this individual perched away from the verandah and when everyone had viewed it in the telescope, I ventured towards the bird expecting it to have flown. Fortunately, it remained on the perch long enough for me to get a close photograph.

This is a direct quote from the Asa Wright Centre website “By far one of the Centre’s star attractions and most sought-after birds, the Tufted Coquette is widely acknowledged as Trinidad’s smallest resident bird at 2.75 inches. The tiny Coquette, sometimes mistaken for a large bee, can be seen from the main house verandah and around the estate visiting small flowers, especially those of the Vervain and Lantana plants. While a popular target species for visiting bird watchers, its small size and hasty feeding behaviour make it a challenge to see, although when at rest its magnificence is truly revealed.”

Species
Tufted Coquette Lophornis ornatus is a tiny hummingbird that breeds in eastern Venezuela, Trinidad, Guiana, and northern Brazil. It is an uncommon but widespread species and appears to be a local or seasonal migrant, although its movements are not well understood. This small bird inhabits open country, gardens, and cultivation.

Status and Distribution
Tufted Coquette is a species of least concern with an unknown population size but thought to be decreasing in its range of just over one million square kilometres. It is found on Trinidad but is absent from Tobago. It is a monotypic species.

References
Asa Wright Centre; BirdLife; Wikipedia; World Bird Names; Kenefick, M., Restall, R., and Hayes, F. (2015) Birds of Trinidad and Tobago, Bloomsbury Publishing, page 166.

Photograph
Photographed in early morning light at 1/500th of a second, f5.6 and ISO 1250