About Hemithraupis flavicollis (Vieillot, 1818)
The yellow-backed tanager (Hemithraupis flavicollis) is a relatively small tanager species. It has an average body mass of 12.9 g, and an average tail length of around 5 cm, with females having slightly shorter tails than males. Like many tanager species, the yellow-backed tanager is sexually dimorphic: males have vibrant plumage, while females have duller plumage. Male plumage varies between different subspecies, but most males have black heads, necks, wings, and tails; bright yellow throats, vents, and backs; and white breasts, bellies, and undertail coverts. Females of all subspecies have bright yellow throats, rumps, median coverts, and breasts, with olive-colored crowns, necks, backs, bellies, and tails. Both sexes have silvery-grey legs, and a bill with a dark upper mandible and yellowish-orange lower mandible; the lower mandible has a bolder, more distinct color on males. This species produces a variety of different calls and songs, which are mostly made up of high-pitched chirps and trills. Males also make a distinctive buzzing call when attempting to initiate copulation.
