Blue-chested Hummingbird

Overview

The blue-chested hummingbird (Polyerata amabilis) is a small, intensely colored resident of Caribbean-slope lowland rainforest — one of several hummingbird species found in Tortuguero, and arguably the most striking. The male is unmistakable: a glittering emerald-green body, a violet-blue chest patch that flashes deep blue in direct light, and a slightly forked tail with a bluish gloss. The female is green above and white to pale buff below, with small green spots on the flanks. Both sexes have a straight, medium-length bill suited to mid-length tubular flowers. Length is approximately 9–10 cm; weight about 4–5 g.

The species was long placed in the genus Amazilia and may appear under that name in older field guides. Current taxonomy (supported by phylogenetic work published in the 2010s) places it in Polyerata alongside the charming hummingbird (P. decora) of southwest Costa Rica. The two are not sympatric at Tortuguero.

Why Tortuguero

Tortuguero’s lowland Atlantic forest is the heartland of this species’ range. The park’s abundant Heliconia, ginger (Costus spp.), and low understorey flowering plants provide reliable nectar year-round, supporting a resident population that does not depend on seasonal irruptions. Blue-chested hummingbirds are trap-line foragers — they maintain regular routes between scattered flowering plants rather than defending a single rich patch — which means a quiet walk along the main trail at any time of year has a reasonable chance of an encounter.

How to see them (honestly)

• Time: any morning; they begin foraging at first light and are most active in the first two hours after dawn.
• Where: along the forest trail (sendero principal) wherever Heliconia is in flower, and in flowering shrubs at the forest edge near the canal banks. The boat tour also produces sightings of birds forching over the water.
• What to watch for: fast, direct flight low through the understory; distinctive hovering posture with tail slightly spread. The blue chest is only visible at close range and in direct light — from the side or in shade the bird can look uniformly dark.
• Sound: a thin, high-pitched tsit chip note. Not melodic; more of a contact call between foraging bouts.

Status note

Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, with a population considered stable across its restricted but continuous Caribbean-slope range. The species is not globally threatened, but it is range-restricted and endemic to a narrow lowland corridor. Any large-scale deforestation of Caribbean-slope lowland forest would meaningfully affect it — which makes Tortuguero and the adjacent Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge important strongholds. No significant hunting or trade pressure exists.