Discosura is a genus of South and Central American hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. The thorntails are sometimes placed in the genus Popelairia (Reichenbach, 1854), leaving Discosura for the racket-tailed coquette. On the contrary, some have argued for merging this genus into Lophornis, which they overall resemble, except for the highly modified tail-feathers of the males.
The genus Discosura was introduced in 1850 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte.[1] Bonaparte did not specify a type species but this was designated as the racket-tailed coquette by George Robert Gray in 1855.[2] [3] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek diskos meaning "plate" with oura meaning "tail".[4]
The genus contains five species.[5]
| Image | Common Name | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discosura popelairii | Colombia, Ecuador and Peru | ||
| Discosura langsdorffi | Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. | ||
| Discosura letitiae | Probably Bolivia (only known from two old specimens of uncertain origin) | ||
| Discosura conversii | Costa Rica to Ecuador | ||
| Discosura longicaudus | Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and southern Venezuela | ||