Isabel Guerra writing from Peru notes that “Cesar Sanchez Morales, a scientist from Louisiana State University (US), identified 290 species during his 40-days stay at Cerros de Amotape National Park, in Tumbes region. During his visit, Sanchez identified for the first time a new species of hummingbird; the colirrojizo (red-tail), that had not been registered before.”

Perhaps the use of the name colirrojizo indicates it is ethnoknown locally. For Peru, there is also a locally seen bird with the Spanish name of mosquerito colirrojizo, which is known in English as the ruddy-tailed flycatcher, and in Latin, Terenotriccus erythrurus.

No photos or further info appears to be available yet on this new “red-tailed hummingbird” of Peru.

It is worthy of mentioning that there is a bird (pictured below) called the red-tailed comet (Sappho sparganura), which is a medium-sized hummingbird found in the central Andes of Bolivia and Argentina.

Martin Johnson Heade
Red-tailed Comet (hummingbird) in the Andes
Gift of Herbert W. Plimpton: The Hollis W. Plimpton (Class of 1915) Memorial Collection

For those that like to plan ahead, Mead Art Museum at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, has this forthcoming Faculty Lunchtime Talk:
December 4, 2009
12:00 p.m.
free to all
Rick Lopez Assistant Professor of History, will speak on the “Red-tailed Comet (hummingbird) in the Andes” by Martin Johnson Heade in this free, ten-minute gallery talk.