Black-backed Thornbill
Ramphomicron dorsale
The black-backed thornbill is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "coquettes", tribe Lesbiini of subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta of northern Colombia.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-backed_thornbill
Taxonomy & Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Aves
Order
Apodiformes
Family
Trochilidae
Genus
Ramphomicron
Black-backed Thornbill belongs to the family Trochilidae, order Apodiformes, within the Aves class.
Species Profile
The black-backed thornbill is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "coquettes", tribe Lesbiini of subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta of northern Colombia.
The Black-backed Thornbill faces severe population declines primarily due to habitat loss from agricultural expansion, mining activities, and urban development in its restricted Andean range. Climate change poses an additional threat by altering the specific temperature and precipitation conditions required for its high-altitude cloud forest habitat.
Key Facts
Habitat & Distribution
The black-backed thornbill is restricted to the isolated Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in far northern Colombia, where it inhabits the edges of humid and elfin forest and also páramo. In elevation it ranges from as high as the snowline at about .
Threats
IUCN Red List: Endangered
The Black-backed Thornbill faces severe population declines primarily due to habitat loss from agricultural expansion, mining activities, and urban development in its restricted Andean range. Climate change poses an additional threat by altering the specific temperature and precipitation conditions required for its high-altitude cloud forest habitat.
Agricultural expansion and conversion of native habitat
Climate change affecting high-altitude ecosystems
Mining activities and associated infrastructure development
Habitat fragmentation isolating small populations
Urban development and human settlement expansion
Community Sightings
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Sources & Attribution
How to Cite
IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS
GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org
This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Black-backed Thornbill (Ramphomicron dorsale). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/black-backed-thornbill