Jamaican Mango

This the Jamaican mango like other hummin birds is a swift and versatile flyer with their ability to precisely hover in mid-flight. This ability is not just a neat trick, it is essential to the way they feed. They feed exclusively on the nectar of flowering plants, though they are drawn to some plants more than others. The Jamaican mango is a big fan of banana shoots and will sometimes spend the day in and around the area of new shoots jealously guarding it. “Finder’s keepers, losers please go somewhere else”. By its name you would be forgiven to think that the Jamaican mango has some connection or even at least a slight association with mangos, but no. I don’t think it is just me when I say that these birds do not resemble the mango fruit, neither are they particularly persuaded by the allure of mango flower nectar or feed on the fruit. But rather, the common name Jamaican mango is widely believed to be influenced by an unrelated bird, the Indian golden oriole. English naturalist and water colour illustrator Eleazar Albin was working in the Don Saltero’s coffee-house where a specimen of the Indian oriole was present described a painting he produced of the Jamaican mango as “Mango Bird”. This description was later applied to all birds in the sub-family “Polytminae”.

Family: Trochilidae

Genus: Anthracothorax

Scientific name: Anthracothorax mango

Reference

https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/21899/vz_Jamaican_mango.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

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