Black-breasted Puffleg

Critically Endangered

The Black-breasted Puffleg is a critically endangered hummingbird endemic to northwestern Ecuador, with fewer than 250 individuals estimated to remain in the wild. It inhabits high-altitude cloud forests and shrubby ridgelines between 2,400 and 3,500 meters, primarily on the slopes of Volcán Pichincha, Atacazo, and the Cordillera de Toisán. This altitudinal migrant feeds on nectar from ericaceous plants and vines, and its survival is threatened by habitat fragmentation, climate change, and land conversion for agriculture. Once adopted as the emblem of Quito, the species now teeters on the edge of extinction, clinging to isolated patches of montane forest.