Hummingbird found last year faces extinction

A HUMMINgBIRD species discovered only last year is under threat of being wiped out.

The blue- throated hillstar, right, was found in a remote region of the Andes in south-western Ecuador. The area is threatened by the impact of gold mining and the burning of vegetation for cattle farming, putting the population of between 500 and 750 birds at risk.

Francisco Sornoza, the scientist who discovered the species, said the hillstar could become extinct without the creation of a network of protected zones. He warned: ‘Complete support from national and international conservation agencies is needed in order to save this species.’

Adapted for the low temperatures of their mountain habitat, the birds go into a state similar to hibernation at night. They live along bush-lined creeks.