Sabrewing

Sabrewing is the common name given to hummingbirds classified in the genus Campylopterus. The group includes ten species. They are Neotropical birds that inhabit mountainous forests, generally near streams.

Sabrewing
White-tailed sabrewing Campylopterus ensipennis
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Clade:	Strisores
Order:	Apodiformes
Family:	Trochilidae
Tribe:	Trochilini
Genus:	Campylopterus Swainson, 1827
Type species
Trochilus latipennis[1] = Trochilus largipennis Latham, 1790
Species
10, see text

Sabrewings are on average 12 to 15 cm long. Although small birds, they are relatively large compared to other hummingbirds. The bill is black, strong and slightly curved. The two outer primary remiges (flight feathers) are thick and curved, giving the wings a generally curved appearance. This characteristic is the origin of the common name "sabrewing" and the generic name Campylopterus, from the Greek kampulos (curved) + pteros (wing).

The plumage of sabrewings is based on brownish-green, cinnamon, gray and combinations. Some species have additional shades of violet, particularly on the head, tail and/or throat.

Sabrewings feed on flower nectar, like most hummingbirds, with a preference for flowers of the genus Heliconia.

Taxonomy

The genus Campylopterus was erected by the English naturalist William Swainson in 1827.^[2] The type species was subsequently designated as the grey-breasted sabrewing.^[3] The generic name combines the Ancient Greek kampulos meaning "curved" or "bent" and -pteros meaning "-winged".^[4]

The sombre hummingbird and swallow-tailed hummingbird, formerly classified in Campylopterus, have been reclassified by most authorities into their own monotypic genera Aphantochroa and Eupetomena.

The genus contains 10 species:^[5]

Image	Name	Common name	Distribution
	Campylopterus largipennis	Gray-breasted sabrewing	Amazon rainforest
	Campylopterus diamantinensis	Diamantina sabrewing	Brazil
	Campylopterus calcirupicola	Outcrop sabrewing	Brazil
	Campylopterus hyperythrus	Rufous-breasted sabrewing	Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela
	Campylopterus ensipennis	White-tailed sabrewing	northeastern Venezuela and Tobago
	Campylopterus falcatus	Lazuline sabrewing	Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela
	Campylopterus phainopeplus	Santa Marta sabrewing	Colombia
	Campylopterus hemileucurus	Violet sabrewing	southern Mexico and Central America as far south as Costa Rica and western Panama
	Campylopterus duidae	Buff-breasted sabrewing	Brazil and Venezuela
	Campylopterus villaviscensio	Napo sabrewing	Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru