Rainbow Starfrontlet

SCI Name:  Coeligena iris
Protonym:  Helianthea Iris Proc.Zool.Soc.London(1853) (1853), Pt21 no.251 p.61
Taxonomy:  Caprimulgiformes / Trochilidae / Coeligena
Taxonomy Code:  raista1
Type Locality:  Eastern slopes of the Andes.
Author:  Gould
Publish Year:  1853
IUCN Status:  Least Concern

DEFINITIONS

COELIGENA
(Trochilidae; † Bronzy Inca C. coeligena) Specific name Ornismya coeligena Lesson, 1833; "XIIe RACE. — LES CLÉMENCES. (Cœligena, Less.)  Bec très long, très droit; les formes trapues; la queue médiocre, à peine échancrée au milieu ou égale.   1re TRIBU. — LES MEXICAINS. Point de plaque améthyste sur la gorge.   ESP. 42. — OISEAU-MOUCHE DE CLÉMENCE. (Ornismya Clemenciæ, Less.   ...   ESP. 43. — OISEAU-MOUCHE COELIGÈNE. (Ornismya Cœligena, Less.)   ...   ESP. 44. — OISEAU-MOUCHE RIVOLI. (Ornismya Rivolii, Less.)" (Lesson 1833); "Cœligena Lesson, Les Trochilidées [1833], Index Gén., p. xviii.  Type, by tautonymy, Ornismya coeligena Lesson.   ...   Replaces Helianthea Gould for the following reasons: The genus Coeligena as originally constituted contained three species, Ornismya clemenciae Lesson, Ornismya coeligena Lesson and Ornismya rivolii Lesson [= Trochilus fulgens Swainson].  In List Gen. Bds., 1840, p. 14, G. R. Gray designated the first of these as type of the genus, but his designation is superfluous since Ornismya coeligena is automatically the type by tautonymy." (Peters, 1945, V, p. 98).  Subsequently, Gray, 1848, Genera of Birds, p. 112, and Gray, 1855, Cat. Genera Subgenera Birds Brit. Mus., pp. 21-22, still regarded Ornismya clemenciae Lesson (= Lampornis clemenciae), as the type of Coeligena Lesson, and treated Ornismya coeligena Lesson as the type of Caeligena Bonaparte, 1849 (i.e. Coeligena Bonaparte, 1850).  Bonaparte, 1850, Conspectus Generum Avium, I (1), p. 73, certainly regarded his monotypic generic name as barely equivalent to that of Lesson, an opinion supported by Elliot, 1879, Smithsonian Contrib. Knowledge, 317, Classif. Synop. Trochilidae, p. 74.
Var. Caeligena.
Synon. Bourcieria, Calligenia, Coeliola, Conradinia, Diphogena, Eudosia, Euphasia, Helianthea, Homophania, Hypochrysia, Lampropygia, Leucuria, Pilonia, Polyaena, Pseudocoeligena, Pseudodiphlogaena, Pseudohomophania, Urania.
• (Trochilidae; syn. Colibri † Sparkling Violet-ear C. coruscans) "TROCHILUS Lin.   ...   3. Subgen.  Cœligena Less.   4. Tr. Anais Less. Rev. Zool. 1838. p. 315.   5. Tr. furcatus Lin. Gmel. I. p. 486. 26.  Ornismyia furcata Less. Ois. mouch. tab. 18." (von Tschudi 1844); "Coeligena von Tschudi, 1844, Unters. Fauna Peruana, Ornithologie, p. 39.  Type, by subsequent designation (Elliot, 1879, Smithsonian Contrib. Knowledge, 317, Classif. Synop. Trochilidae, p. 49), Ramphodon anais Lesson, 1832 (not Ornismya anais Lesson, 1831) = Trochilus coruscans Gould, 1846." (JAJ 2020). 
• (Trochilidae; syn. Lampornis † Blue-throated Hummingbird L. clemenciae) "XIIe RACE. — LES CLÉMENCES. (Cœligena, Less.)" (Lesson 1833; see above for full OD); "Cœligena Lesson, 1833, Les Trochilidées, Index Gén., p. xviii.  Type, by subsequent designation (G. Gray, 1840, List Genera Birds, p. 14), C. clemenciae Less. =  Ornismya clemenciae Lesson.  This fixation was also used by Elliot, 1879, Smithsonian Contrib. Knowledge, 317, Classif. Synop. Trochilidae, p. 29." (JAJ 2020).

coeligena / coeligenus
L. coeligenus  heaven-born, celestial  < coelum or caelum  heaven; genus  offspring  < gignere  to bring forth (cf. Gr. γενος genos  child).
● "ORNISMYA COELIGENA  ... L'espèce à laquelle nous donnons le nom spécifique d'Ornismye Fille du Ciel" (Lesson 1833) (Coeligena).

iris
Gr. myth. Iris, an Oceanid and daughter of Thaumas and Electra, was the messenger of Juno and goddess of the rainbow  < ιρις iris, ιριδος iridos  rainbow.
● "Forehead magnificent green, succeeded on the sides by rich orange and in the centre by blue, all with a highly metallic lustre; throat, neck and chest glittering green, with a small gorget of purplish feathers in the centre of the former; posterior part of the body and tail chestnut-red" (Gould 1853) (Coeligena).
● "le nom spécifique d'iris ferait illusion aux teintes chatoyantes et métalliques de leur plumage" (Oustalet 1879) (Lamprotornis).
● "Pitt[a]. capite, collo, pectore, abdomine, lateribus, et femoribus nigerrimis; fascia superoculari, ad occiput ducta ferruginea; corpore supra, alisque ex aureo viridibus, humeris metallice cæruleis et fascia inferiore lazulina ornatis" (Gould 1842) (Pitta).
● "Du rouge- vermillon couvre le front, en s'étendant au-dessous des yeux: cette teinte est nuancée à l'occiput de vert et de bleuâtre; une tache améthiste en forme de croissant couvre le méat auditif, et un large collier jaune ceint la nuque; toutes les parties supérieures et la queue sont d'un beau vert-pré, les joues d'un vert clair; la poitrine et les autres parties inférieures d'un vert-jaunâtre" (Temminck 1835) (Psitteuteles).

SUBSPECIES

Rainbow Starfrontlet (hesperus)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris hesperus
hesperus
Gr. ἑσπερος hesperos  evening star, western (cf. Gr. myth Hesperos, stargazing son of Eos and who was changed into the evening star Venus).

Rainbow Starfrontlet (iris)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris iris
iris
Gr. myth. Iris, an Oceanid and daughter of Thaumas and Electra, was the messenger of Juno and goddess of the rainbow  < ιρις iris, ιριδος iridos  rainbow.
● "Forehead magnificent green, succeeded on the sides by rich orange and in the centre by blue, all with a highly metallic lustre; throat, neck and chest glittering green, with a small gorget of purplish feathers in the centre of the former; posterior part of the body and tail chestnut-red" (Gould 1853) (Coeligena).
● "le nom spécifique d'iris ferait illusion aux teintes chatoyantes et métalliques de leur plumage" (Oustalet 1879) (Lamprotornis).
● "Pitt[a]. capite, collo, pectore, abdomine, lateribus, et femoribus nigerrimis; fascia superoculari, ad occiput ducta ferruginea; corpore supra, alisque ex aureo viridibus, humeris metallice cæruleis et fascia inferiore lazulina ornatis" (Gould 1842) (Pitta).
● "Du rouge- vermillon couvre le front, en s'étendant au-dessous des yeux: cette teinte est nuancée à l'occiput de vert et de bleuâtre; une tache améthiste en forme de croissant couvre le méat auditif, et un large collier jaune ceint la nuque; toutes les parties supérieures et la queue sont d'un beau vert-pré, les joues d'un vert clair; la poitrine et les autres parties inférieures d'un vert-jaunâtre" (Temminck 1835) (Psitteuteles).

Rainbow Starfrontlet (aurora)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris aurora
aurora
Roman myth. Aurora, rosy-fingered goddess of the dawn, sister to Helios and Selene  <  aurora  dawn, east.
● ex “Petit Tyran de Cayenne” of d’Aubenton 1765-1781, pl. 571, fig. 1 (syn. Myiarchus tyrannulus).

Rainbow Starfrontlet (fulgidiceps)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris fulgidiceps
fulgidiceps
L. fulgidus  glittering, shining  < fulgere  to shine; -ceps  -headed, capped  < caput, capitis  head.

Rainbow Starfrontlet (flagrans)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris flagrans
flagrans
L. flagrans, flagrantis  blazing, flaming, glowing  < flagrare  to flame.

Rainbow Starfrontlet (eva)
SCI Name: Coeligena iris eva
eva
● Eva Mary Godman (1895-1965) English ornithologist, daughter of Frederick DuCane Godman (Martin Schneider in litt.) (subsp. Coeligena iris).
● Eva Meise (b. 1907) wife of German zoologist Dr W. Meise (subsp. Myzomela chloroptera).