Green-crowned brilliant

Species of hummingbird

The green crowned brilliant (Heliodoxa jacula) is species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama. It is also known as the green fronted brilliant.

The green crowned brilliant has three subspecies, the nominate H. j. jacula, H. j. henryi, and H. j. jamersoni. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a glittering green to blue green head and breast with a small metallic violet blue patch on the throat. The upperparts and belly are bronzy green, the vent area white, and the thighs also white. The tail is blue black. Adult females' blue green head is not shiny like the male's. They also have a short white malar stripe. Their underparts are whitish and heavily spotted with green; the spots merge on the flanks. The tail is black and the outer feathers have white tips. Immature males have a dull bronzy green crown and underparts, a bright buff chin and malar, and a shallowly forked tail. Immature females have a bright buff throat and duller green spots on the underparts than the adult.

The green crowned brilliant makes "a loud and squeaky kyew or tyew call". In Costa Rica, displaying males make "a tseek, tseek, tseek" call. During chases the species makes "loud sputtering notes and squeaks".

The IUCN has assessed the green crowned brilliant as being of Least Concern, though its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. It has been recorded in several protected areas. It "shows some tolerance of habitat fragmentation, degradation and disturbance [but] outright forest clearance is expected to cause local population declines".