ヒノドハチドリ
この小さな鳥の美しさは想像以上だ。しかし、それが見られるのは光の加減によるほんの一瞬だけ。
ヒノドハチドリの羽毛は大部分が緑や青だが、その喉元は赤、オレンジ、黄色に輝く。燃え上がる炎のようだ。
この鳥はコスタリカとパナマの山岳地帯に生息し、花の蜜を食するが、たまに昆虫やクモも食べる。
この写真は2016年4月、カナダのバンクーバーで24歳の自然写真家ジェス・ファインドリーが撮影した。この鳥との出会いについて彼は、メールでハフポストUS版にこう語ってくれた。
「この見事なハチドリは、コスタリカのタラマンカ山脈の、標高2700ｍあたりに置かれた花蜜フィーダーにやってきた鳥たちです。おなかが空いてくると、鳥たちはお互いに争いを始めることがあり、やがてそのうちの一羽が追い立てられて、近くの小枝に留まります。それでも撮影はとても難しいものでした。なにしろ鳥たちは始終せわしなく動きますし、全身を覆う美しい色がすべて際立って見えるのは、鳥がある一定の角度に向いて体の動きを止めた、ほんの一瞬しかないからです」
この鳥は極めて美しく、また極めて小さい。全長はわずか11cmほどで体重は5.7グラムしかない。しかし、ハチドリの中では、このヒノドハチドリは中ぐらいの大きさだ。その名の通り大型のハチドリのオオハチドリよりは小さいし、現存する鳥の中では世界最小のマメハチドリよりは確かに大きい。
▼画像集が開きます
美しい鳥
(01 of20)
A peacock is seen at the Rossy Whalther\'s Zoo in Tegucigalpa, Honduras on July 11,2013. (ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(02 of20)
A Malachite Kingfisher sits by a pool in Kruger National Park on July 8, 2013 in Lower Sabie, South Africa. The Kruger National Park was established in 1898, and is South Africa\'s premier wildlife park, spanning an area of approximately 2 million hectares. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(03 of20)
A rescued albino blackbird is pictured at the animal rescue station in Bartosovice, Moravia. There are maximum several dozens of albino blackbirds in Europe. In nature, most of them do not survive because others attack them. This first in Czech Republic albino blackbird is one month old and was found in a park. (RADEK MICA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(04 of20)
An eagle owl (Hibou grand-duc) is pictured at the zoo of the French eastern city of Amneville, on July 08, 2013. (JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(05 of20)
A King Vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) perches on a trunk at the Zoo Summit outside Panama City on June 17, 2013. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(06 of20)
A Jay eats a baby Great Tit after poaching it from a nest in Green Park on June 3, 2013 in London, England. The Jay is a member of the crow family and usually eats invertebrates such as beetles and caterpillars, as well as fruit and seeds such as Acorns. Though not common behaviour they are also known to take small birds from their nests for food. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(07 of20)
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja) \'Panama\', is seen at the Zoo Summit outside Panama City on June 17, 2013. The three-year old eagle --the first to be born in captivity at the Miami Metro Zoo-- was given as a present as it is Panama\'s national bird. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(08 of20)
A cassowary bird that is native to Australia and New Guinea rainforests is seen in it\'s enclosure at the Beijing zoo on June 24, 2013. The zoo grounds were originally a Ming Dynasty imperial palace and finally opened to the public in 1908. (MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(09 of20)
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja) \'Panama\', is seen at the Zoo Summit outside Panama City on June 17, 2013. The three-year old eagle --the first to be born in captivity at the Miami Metro Zoo-- was given as a present as it is Panama\'s national bird. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(10 of20)
A Pied Kingfisher sits on a bridge by the water in Kruger National Park on July 7, 2013 in Lower Sabie, South Africa. The Kruger National Park was established in 1898, and is South Africa\'s premier wildlife park, spanning an area of approximately 2 million hectares. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(11 of20)
A secretarybird is pictured at the zoo of the French eastern city of Amneville, on July 8, 2013. (JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(12 of20)
A rare Southern Ground Hornbill sits on the ground in Kruger National Park on July 6, 2013 in Lower Sabie, South Africa. The Kruger National Park was established in 1898, and is South Africa\'s premier wildlife park, spanning an area of approximately 2 million hectares. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(13 of20)
A cassowary bird that is native to Australia and New Guinea rainforests is seen in it\'s enclosure at the Beijing zoo on June 24, 2013. The zoo grounds were originally a Ming Dynasty imperial palace and finally opened to the public in 1908. (MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(14 of20)
A scarlet ibis is pictured at the zoo of Mulhouse, eastern France, on June 13, 2013. (SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(15 of20)
A Martial Eagle sits in a tree in Kruger National Park on July 7, 2013 in Lower Sabie, South Africa. The Kruger National Park was established in 1898, and is South Africa\'s premier wildlife park, spanning an area of approximately 2 million hectares. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(16 of20)
Barn Owl chicks (chouette-effraie) are pictured at the zoo of the French eastern city of Amneville, on July 8, 2013. (JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(17 of20)
A greenwing macaw is pictured at the zoo of the French eastern city of Amneville, on July 8, 2013. (JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(18 of20)
A King Vulture (Sarcoramphus papa) perches on a trunk at the Zoo Summit outside Panama City on June 17, 2013. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(19 of20)
A great-tailed grackle stands gape-mouthed in the shade in 120-degree heat near Furnace Creek Ranch on the eve of the AdventurCORPS Badwater 135 ultra-marathon race on July 14, 2013 in Death Valley National Park, California. Billed as the toughest footrace in the world, the 36th annual Badwater 135 starts at Badwater Basin in Death Valley, 280 feet below sea level, where athletes begin a 135-mile non-stop run over three mountain ranges in extreme mid-summer desert heat to finish at 8,350-foot near Mount Whitney for a total cumulative vertical ascent of 13,000 feet. July 10 marked the 100-year anniversary of the all-time hottest world record temperature of 134 degrees, set in Death Valley where the average high in July is 116. A total of 96 competitors from 22 nations are attempting the run which equals about five back-to-back marathons. Previous winners have completed all 135 miles in slightly less than 24 hours. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(20 of20)
This June 19, 2013, photo shows Aura, a three-year-old female peregrine falcon, at the home of biologist Glenn Stewart in Santa Cruz, Calif. After decades of scrambling on the underside of California bridges to pluck endangered peregrine falcon fledglings teetering in ill-placed nests, inseminating female birds and releasing captive-raised chicks, wildlife biologists have been so successful in bringing back the powerful raptors that they now threaten Southern Californias endangered shorebird breeding sites. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it will no longer permit high profile peregrine chick rescues from Bay Area bridges, a move which they concede will likely lead to fluffy chicks tumbling into the water below and drowning next spring. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) (credit:AP)
（スライドショーが見られない方はこちらへ）