The Sword Billed Hummingbird

The Sword Billed Hummingbird- 
For my Love for the hummingbird my dears

Yes I haven't forgotten my group of post on
The Hummingbird!
This next one I think you will find quite amazing little bird with his long bill that can reach up to 4 inches long. It is the only member of the hummingbirds to have this amazing bill of such length too. Plus its a beak and bill combined. 
The Sword Billed Hummingbird - Ensifera his other name. He is commonly compared with his Cousin the Ruby-throat hummingbird whose bills can reach up to 3inches in length - beak and body combined!

These beautiful hummers crazily exaggerated their bills that have evolved
to help them feed from tubular type flowers like that of  the fuchsia's. It's kinda reminds me of the 'Pinocchio' of the hummingbird world.. Yet I believe that its the good boy of the children's story.

Sword-bills hummers are the only birds that can reach nectar deep  

inside the corollas and in the process of doing that, they transfer pollen from flower to flower. So they too are like the bee's. They are amazing little birds and that's why I love them so. And My Rosy!
With such a long bill, these Sword Billed Hummingbirds also has an extremely long tongue too! So when the tiny bird perches, it can hold it bill vertically in an effort to reduce the strain on its neck.

These Beautiful hummingbirds are  charismatic hummer from Andean South America. It is found from Venezuela and Colombia

to the Northern parts of Bolivia in the South. It belongs to the Monotypic - Ensifer species of hummingbirds. They are quite different from all the other types of hummingbirds because of their; metallic green and bronzed overall look.  Also with their black bill that is slightly up curved and longer than their body's length. This Sword-bill hummingbird is the only one with a bill length that exceeds the body in length. 
Bill- Can be as long or longer than the bird's body, its a black , needle-thin with an up curved look.
The size of the hummer- They can be up to 7-10 inches long including their bill length with deeply forked tails.

These are Tropical hummingbirds and are a year around residents in the higher elevations, which is most commonly found above the elevation of 7,000 feet in the Andes Mountains. Their range extends from eastern Venezuela to Bolivia, reaching through Colombia, Peru and Ecuador, but they prefer open forest or the forest edge. Yet one can find these

beautiful Sword-bill's in some backyards and hummingbird gardens. These hummers do not migrate, but they may move nomadically to follow the best seasons for blooming flowers. 

As far as behavior for breeding and their vocals, while not particularly vocal these Sword-billed hummers, but they do have  high pitched, single note 'chip' or tsip' call that has a sharp tone.

These hammers have a different behavior when it comes to feeding because of the length of their bills and the weight too. They

typically will perch with their bill held straight up or at a steep angle to help relieve strain on the neck muscles on their small necks. Similarly, when feeding they mostly visit flowers that have long blooms that hang down quite long allowing them to probe the flowers easily from underneath with their bills still held at a steep angle. Unlike most hummingbirds, the sword-billed hummingbirds cannot preen with their bills and preen using their feet instead. Because of this behavior, they have developed some of the largest feet of any of the humming birds. 

These very special flowers that are shown below that only the

Sword-bill hummingbird can feed from and in turn pollinate too as these flowers continue to evolve and continue to grow even longer are called Passiflora Datura or Passiflora mixta. 
These eloquent flowering plants that only the Sword-bill hummingbird can ponilizar, this flower is believed that if the Sword-bill were to disappear or if something were to happen to these tiny gems. These beautiful flowers would disappear too. They are so specialized that only the Sword-bill hummingbird are able to keep these beautiful flowering plants of the tropics alive. Apparently there is proof of their demise if something would happen to the Sword-bill hummingbird too. 

There is a Special thing about these unique flowers and the Sword- bill hummer, although the hummer can go to other flowering plants there is a special relationship with the Passiflora Datura flower and the hummer. Over the years they both have evolved, as the flower gets longer the Sword-bill hummer bill gets longer.. Its quite amazing how nature works and this is a very good example of it. And how we MOST PROTECT THIS DELICATE BALANCE OF NATURE. 

Anyway it is amazing how they depend on each other to continue on.

Thankfully my dear friends,  there is now worries of the Sword-bill hummingbird, becoming endangering unlike some of his cousins.

The Sword-bill Hummingbird is the only hummingbird of its species to be able to rest its body into these long blooming flowers exclusively. Their long sword-bills have even evolved as the flower has grown even longer over the years And the only one that can pollute these beautiful blooms at the same time feeding on them is the Sword-bill

hummingbird. No other hummingbird in the world is accessible to these blooms, because the way their tiny bodies were made just for these blooms. done  These Sword billed hummingbirds with their

six to seven inch bills, can reach these amazing long blooms. That seem to grow at least a inch longer every year. The Sword Billed hummingbirds have an critical job and their bills are the main tool. What this critical job is; to continue to evolve as the Red Angel Trumpet Flower has along with these tiny hummingbird. They have to work together because they really depend on each other to survive on this planet. There is no other hummingbird on this earth that can reach the sweet nectar in these beautiful Red Angle Trumpet Flowers and the sword bill is the only one that can continue to pollutant these flowers each year, so that they will continue to grow.

Breeding-

These hummingbirds, because of the high level 7,000 feet and the 

Isolation of the sword-bill habitat there is not much known about their breeding and offspring, but it is believed that the length of the

Male's bill is what may help attract the females. 

These Sword-bill have been known to go into some hummingbird gardens. In the higher elevation of homes. Feeding on such flowers as the Datura, Fuchsia and Passion Flower. Even feeders but this is scarce if ever. 

I have always been fascinated with the sword-bill and the special flower that it is attracted to . I hope that you find this one of my Love for the hummingbirds to be interesting as mine others. I hope too do more for I love my hummingbirds but as it is the holiday season and I won't have as much time my dears. I wish you all a wonderful and happy Christmas season . Peace and good will to all. I love you all my dear Readers and Followers With much love 

Wendy..