Freile et al. • NATURAL HiSTORY OF THE ROYAL SUNANGEL 
87 
scattered Dictiocaryum lamarckianum , Iriartea 
spp., and Wettinia spp. palms. 
Two separate males and a single female were 
observed on 17 April 2009 in dense lower 
montane forest above Yankuam (Table 1). This 
forest type was characterized by a fairly discon¬ 
tinuous canopy with an average height of 10 m 
(max = 12 m) with lower vegetation where 
limestone was exposed. Dominant families were 
Euphorbiaceae, Clusiaceae, Cunoniaceae, Rubia- 
ceae. Humiriaceae, and Ericaceae. The understory 
was dense (~ 80% ground cover in some areas) 
including patches of ground bromeliads with 
heavy loads of mosses, vine tangles, and epi¬ 
phytes. Of the observed individuals, one male and 
one female were in a natural forest gap, while 
another male was in dense and tangled understory 
feeding at edges of trails, where vegetation was 
sparser than in areas away from trails. 
At least four males and one female were 
observed feeding at shrubby edges and in tangled 
interior on the ridgetop of the sandstone mountain 
above Yankuam (Table 1) on 17 and 19-20 April 
2009; three males were observed performing 
aerial displays near a tall rocky outcrop at the 
edge of the forest. Two distinctive but intermixed 
habitats occurred in this area: (1) stunted shrub- 
land, and (2) an atypical paramo-like vegetation, 
despite the low altitude for paramos (Sierra 1999). 
These habitats were characterized by trees and 
bushes of low stature, a canopy at 2-8 m in height 
with ‘emergent’ trees barely exceeding 5 m. The 
understory was dense, reaching 75—80% cover in 
some areas; the ground cover was also dense with 
many ground bromeliads, acaulescent rosettes 
(those having or appearing to have no stem), 
paramo-like herbs, and terrestrial mosses. The 
density of epiphytes and mosses was low, but 
typical paramo families and genera were domi¬ 
nant, including Macleania and Cavendishici (Eri¬ 
caceae), Macrocarpaea (Gentianaceae), Meriania 
and Miconia (Melastomataceae) bushes, ground 
Asteraceae, and Wienmania (Cunionaceae). 
Vegetation types described correspond to 
Previous ecosystem classifications for the Nan- 
garitza area. Detailed information about general 
Ve getation types in the Nangaritza Valley is 
Provided by Foster and Beltran (1997), Palacios 
0997), Neill (2007), and Jadan (2010). 
Feeding Behavior. —A male H. regalis was 
feeding in dense foothill forest by hovering at an 
e P!phytic Guzmania (Bromeliaceae) bromeliad 
"^3 m above ground. At least one other male fed 
by hovering at several flowers of two ground 
bromeliads Tillandsia cf asplundii , and one 
ericad shrub Disterigma alaternoides , both with 
fairly long (~ 2 cm) corollas, in dense lower 
montane forest. Feeding heights ranged from 0.30 
to 2.5 m. 
We observed 34 feeding visits of H. regalis to 
seven different plant species in stunted shrubland 
and paramo-like habitat above 1,800 m. Plants 
used for foraging included a small terrestrial 
yellow-flowered Guzmania gracilior (Bromelia¬ 
ceae) with six feeding visits; a larger, green-and- 
pink-flowered epiphytic G. garciaensis (4 feeding 
visits); the epiphytic, fuchsia-flowered Elleanthus 
ampliflorus (Orchidaceae) (1 visit); an unidenti¬ 
fied small epiphytic bromeliad (1 visit); the 
stunted tree Macrocarpaea harlingii (Gentiana¬ 
ceae) was visited nine times; an epiphytic 
Cavendishia spp. and a shrub Macleania spp. 
(both pink-flowered Ericaceae) were visited six 
and three times, respectively. Feeding heights 
ranged from 0 to 2.5 m. 
H. regalis fed by hovering on most feeding 
visits (94%, n = 34), but perched on a nearby 
twig at three of 10 flowers probed during a single 
visit to a ground-living small bromeliad. It 
perched on the ground at one of five flowers 
probed during another visit to a ground bromeliad. 
A single male was observed to return to the 
same flowering plants at 8-15 min intervals, 
following a somewhat similar route. It first visited 
a 3-m tall Macrocarpaea harlingii where it fed on 
several individual flowers (but not on the same 
flowers during consecutive visits), and then 
moved either to another Macrocarpaea or to an 
epiphytic Guzmania garciaensis , both ~5 m from 
the first Macrocarpaea. Subsequently, it visited a 
cluster of 10 ground G. gracilior , and left the area 
in the same direction from which it arrived. 
Another individual male was observed making 
regular visits to a patch of small G. gracilior and a 
patch of Macleania spp. shrub, returning to a 
perch of 2 m height. 
Social Interactions.— Few interactions with 
other hummingbirds were observed. One male 
H. regalis was observed displacing, but not 
directly attacking or chasing, a male Ecuadorian 
Piedtail ( Phlogophilus hemileucurus) at feeding 
sites (in ridgetop shrubland above Yankuam), and 
a male attacked and chased a male Green-fronted 
Lancebill (Doryfera ludovicae) when it hovered in 
front of ericaceous flowers in the same site; 
minutes later a D. ludovicae returned and hovered 
