Metallura phoebe
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The black metaltail (Metallura phoebe) is a species of hummingbird in the "coquettes", tribe Lesbiini of subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to Peru. The black metaltail is monotypic. Slight differences between populations in the north and south of its range have led to speculation that it might have two subspecies. It appears to be sister to the other species of the genus Metallura.
The black metaltail is 11.5 to 12.5 cm (4.5 to 4.9 in) long and weighs about 6 g (0.21 oz). It has a medium length, straight, black bill. The adult male is overall black with a purplish or rosy gray sheen. Its slightly forked tail is iridescent bronzy gold and rosy gray on its upper side and glittering golden-orange on its underside. It has a conspicuous white spot behind the eye and its gorget is glittering turquoise green. The adult female is overall dark smoky gray with a smaller gorget than the male. Juveniles are similar to the female but without a gorget.
The black metaltail is found on the western slope of the Peruvian Andes from southern Cajamarca Department south almost to the Chilean border. It also occurs in some valleys... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arequipa | 🇵🇪 Peru |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black Metaltail sighting in Arequipa on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 49th most-seen of the 61 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black Metaltail in Arequipa on a given day, against under 5% in September to July, the lowest months. That is one of Arequipa's driest months, with almost no rain against 45 mm in February.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black Metaltail sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Arequipa, in our data
Arequipa is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Black Metaltail sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Trochilidae
The closest relatives of the Black Metaltail that you can see in Arequipa (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Oasis Hummingbird (about 80%), Peruvian Sheartail (about 50%) and Purple-collared Woodstar (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black Metaltail is recorded against all the birds logged in Arequipa (13 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
