Microchera

Microchera
Snowcap (Microchera albocoronata)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Clade:	Strisores
Order:	Apodiformes
Family:	Trochilidae
Tribe:	Trochilini
Genus:	Microchera Gould, 1858
Type species
Mellisuga albocoronata[1] Lawrence, 1855
Species
3, see text

Microchera is a genus of hummingbirds.

Species

The genus includes three species:^[2]

Genus Microchera – Gould, 1858 – three species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Snowcap Male Female	Microchera albocoronata (Lawrence, 1855) Two subspecies[3] M. a. albocoronata (Lawrence, 1855) M. a. parvirostris (Lawrence, 1865)	Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama	Size: Habitat: Diet:	LC
Coppery-headed emerald Male Female	Microchera cupreiceps (Lawrence, 1866)	Costa Rica	Size: Habitat: Diet:	LC
White-tailed emerald	Microchera chionura (Gould, 1851)	Costa Rica and Panama.	Size: Habitat: Diet:	LC

The white-tailed emerald and the coppery-headed emerald were formerly placed in the genus Elvira. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that these two species were closely related to the snowcap in the genus Microchera.^[4] The three species were therefore placed together in Microchera which has priority.^[2]

References

1. "Trochilidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
2. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2020). "Hummingbirds". IOC World Bird List Version 10.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
3. Gill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P., eds. (August 2022). "Hummingbirds". IOC World Bird List. v 12.2. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
4. McGuire, J.; Witt, C.; Remsen, J.V.; Corl, A.; Rabosky, D.; Altshuler, D.; Dudley, R. (2014). "Molecular phylogenetics and the diversification of hummingbirds". Current Biology. 24 (8): 910–916. Bibcode:2014CBio...24..910M. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2014.03.016. PMID 24704078.