The Jamaican mango (Anthracothorax mango) is a bird from the family Trochilidae. This bird is endemic to the island of Jamaica.
The natural habitat of this mango bird consists of lowland country which can be open or semi-open. This includes forest edges, gardens, and banana plantations.
The preferred elevations include sea level to 2625 ft (800 m). Jamaican mango breeding is known to take place all year long, but the peak is known to happen between January and May. A male tends to perform a U-shaped flight display to attract mates and plays no role in reproduction, except mating.
The female lays two eggs and incubates the eggs for about 16-17 days alone and also feeds the chicks. The nest of this mango bird is tiny and made with plant fibers, lined with animal hair, and softer plant fibers.
The plumage of the Jamaican mango is generally blackish or dark in color with shiny streaks around the cheeks and sides of the neck. The bill is long and curved downwards.
The crown part is pale greenish and the feet and legs are also dark in color.
The eyes of the Jamaican mango are brownish in color and are bordered with a black eyering. Males and females are generally similar-looking, but females are known to have a slight greenish tinge on the flanks and the retrices, outer ones have a white tip.
The young males look quite similar to the females, but their throat is dark blue in color. The diet of the Jamaican mango mainly consists of nectar from flowers that are strongly scented and brightly colored.
It is known to prefer high natural sugar content flowers or nectar.
The long, stretchable, and straw-like tongue of this mango bird helps it to extract nectar from flowers. The population of the Jamaican mango is restricted to Jamaica but is not decreasing and is given the conservation status of Least Concern.
Continue reading for more Jamaican mango facts and check out our other articles about the common ostrich and owl.
Jamaican Mango Interesting Facts
What type of animal is a Jamaican mango?
The Jamaican mango is a bird type.
What class of animal does a Jamaican mango belong to?
This bird categorized in the class of Aves of birds.
How many Jamaican mangoes are there in the world?
There is no total estimation of the global population of this species of bird.
Where does a Jamaican mango live?
This bird is only found on the island of Jamaica.
What is a Jamaican mango's habitat?
The natural habitat of the Jamaican mango consists of lowland country which can be open or semi-open. This includes forest edges, gardens, and banana plantations. The preferred elevations include sea level to 2625 ft (800 m). This bird may also be seen in borders of wet forests around June to August.
Who does Jamaican mango live with?
It is unknown if these birds are solitary or tend to live in groups or pairs, but hummingbirds are known to be solitary.
How long does a Jamaican mango live?
The Jamaican mango life expectancy is unknown.
How do they reproduce?
The breeding of the Jamaican mango takes place all year, but the peak season is known to be around January and May. The female is known to build nests by weaving plant fibers.
To camouflage the nest, this species adds green moss. The nest is small or tiny and is shaped like a cup.
The nest is located in a bush, tree, or shrub and secured with low branches using webs of spiders. The lining of the nest is done with animal hair, soft fibers of plants, and feathers. Two white-colored eggs are laid and the incubation of these eggs is done for about 16-17 days.
The incubation is done by the female alone, and the male protects and defends the feeding and nesting territories. A male is known to mate with a number of females.
Regurgitation of insects is done by the female to feed the young ones. Fledging takes place 24 days after hatching.
What is their conservation status?
These birds are categorized as a Least Concern species.
Jamaican Mango Fun Facts
What does the Jamaican mango look like?
The Jamaican mango is known to be large and also dark in color but in good lighting, the plumage is be brighter. This bird has iridescent streaks which are magenta in color on the cheeks and the sides of the neck.
The back and shoulder of this species are pale bronze-green. The flight feathers and wing coverts appear glossy and are shiny blue-blackish in color. The central retrices on the tail are bronze or pale black but the other feathers are known to be violet-metallic.
The tip of the tail has a dark blue-colored band. The crown of this bird is pale greenish. The bill of this species of hummingbird is curved downwards and is long.
This bird is known to have a black-colored eyering and the eyes are brownish in color. The legs and feet are also black in color.
Males and females are generally similar-looking, but females are known to have a slight greenish tinge on the flanks and the retrices, outer ones have a white tip. The young males look quite similar to the females, but their throat is dark blue in color.
How cute are they?
This species is considered cute because of its colorful plumage.
How do they communicate?
Various kinds of sounds, songs, or calls are used for communication with each other if there is a threat or during the breeding season.
How big is a Jamaican mango?
The length of the Jamaican mango is 4.3-4.7 in (11-12 cm). It is similar in size to a lesser goldfinch and slightly smaller than a mountain chickadee.
How fast can a Jamaican mango fly?
The flying speed of the Jamaican mango is not known, but this mango bird is not migratory. These birds perform displays and aerial flights in defense of their territories.
How much does a Jamaican mango weigh?
The weight of this species is around 0.29-0.31 oz (8.5-9 g).
What are the male and female names of the species?
Male and female Jamaican mango birds do not have any specific names.
What would you call a baby Jamaican mango?
Baby birds, in general, are referred to as chicks or young ones and Jamaican mango babies do not have any particular name.
What do they eat?
The diet of this species consists of nectar from small flowers that are scented and bright colored. These flowers are found on trees, shrubs, herbs, and epiphytes.
Flowers with natural high-sugar content are preferred. These birds tend to have long, straw-like tongues which are used to extract nectar. It has been recorded that this species might also feed on small insects like spiders.
Are they dangerous?
The Jamaican mango is not considered dangerous to humans.
Would they make a good pet?
They are wild animals so not suitable as pets.
Did you know...
The formal description of this species was done by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in System Naturae's 10th edition. The binomial name given to this species back then was Trochilus mango. It was placed under the genus Anthracothorax by Friedrich Boie in 1831.
This mango bird is stated as monotypic, meaning no subspecies of this bird have been recognized.
Other names for this species include black mango hummingbird or black hummingbird.
How many eggs do Jamaican mango lay?
A female Jamaican mango is known to lay two eggs and the nest is tiny and shaped like a cup. It is woven with plant fibers and animal hair as animal hair are softer materials and camouflaged using green moss.
How to tell female and male Jamaican mango birds apart?
The male and female of this species look almost similar, but the female is known to have a pale greenish tinge on the flanks and have tipped outer retrices.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other birds from our cockatoo facts and hoopoe facts pages.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Jamaican mango coloring pages.