Great Sapphirewing

The Great Sapphirewing inhabits high-elevation cloud forests and páramo margins along the Ecuadorian Andes, primarily between 3,000 and 3,600 meters, where it favors shrubby slopes and forest edges with scattered trees. Though its occurrence is patchy, it is locally common in suitable habitat, often seen gliding between flowering shrubs with slow, deliberate wingbeats. The species is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, with a stable population across its broad Andean range. Natural history observations reveal solitary behavior, seasonal movements into open páramo, and moss-lined nests built by females in sheltered vegetation, with males playing no role in parental care.