Blue-tufted Starthroat

Blue-tufted Starthroat

Heliomaster furcifer

Silhouette: Cristian Gutierrez-Ibanez · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Buenos Aires

In 3 days <5%

7 Verified sightings at Buenos Aires
331 In all 7 parks From 2019 to 2026
October Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Blue-tufted Starthroat

The blue-tufted starthroat (Heliomaster furcifer) is a species of hummingbird in the "mountain gems", tribe Lampornithini in subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and possibly Ecuador.

At one time the blue-tufted starthroat was the only species in genus Heliomaster, but since the mid-1900s three other species have been reassigned to it. The blue-tufted starthroat is monotypic. The blue-tufted starthroat is 12.6 to 13 cm (5.0 to 5.1 in) long and weighs 5 to 6.5 g (0.18 to 0.23 oz). Both sexes of all subspecies have a long, decurved, black bill and a small white spot behind the eye. Both have a forked tail but the female's is less deeply indented than the male's. Males in breeding plumage have an emerald green crown, nape, and upper back; the rest of the upperparts are shining coppery green. The throat is glittering violet. The underparts and elongated feathers on the sides of the neck are iridescent ultramarine. The tail is dark green on its upper side and blue-green below. Non-breeding males are grayish below like females. Females have coppery green upperparts. The throat and... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:14

Brazil · 2025

© JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA · XC1017274 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:10

Paraguay · 2014

© Fabrice Schmitt · XC616315 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:26

Argentina

© Bernabe Lopez-Lanus · XC48793 · CC BY-NC-SA 3.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 El Palmar National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~20%
2 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
3 Iberá National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
4 Amboró National Park 🇧🇴 Bolivia
<5%
5 Chapada dos Guimarães National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
6 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%
7 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Cordoba 🇦🇷 Argentina
~20%
2 Rosario 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
3 Asuncion 🇵🇾 Paraguay
~10%
4 Campo Grande 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
5 Santa Cruz de la Sierra 🇧🇴 Bolivia
<5%
6 Buenos Aires 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Blue-tufted Starthroat in Buenos Aires?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-tufted Starthroat sighting in Buenos Aires on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 269th most-seen of the 274 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Blue-tufted Starthroat in Buenos Aires?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-tufted Starthroat in Buenos Aires on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Blue-tufted Starthroat?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blue-tufted Starthroat sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Buenos Aires the best place to see a Blue-tufted Starthroat?

6th of 6

Of the 6 cities where we can rate Blue-tufted Starthroat sightings, Buenos Aires ranks 6th at under 5%. The best odds are in Cordoba (Argentina, about 20%), Rosario (Argentina, about 10%) and Asuncion (Paraguay, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Blue-tufted Starthroat live in Buenos Aires?

Same family: Trochilidae

The closest relatives of the Blue-tufted Starthroat that you can see in Buenos Aires (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Gilded Hummingbird (about 40%) and Glittering-bellied Emerald (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Blue-tufted Starthroat sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Blue-tufted Starthroat is recorded against all the birds logged in Buenos Aires (7 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.

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