The sunangels are a genus of hummingbirds, Heliangelus, found in montane South America.
Taxonomy
The genus Heliangelus was introduced in 1848 by the English ornithologist John Gould. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek ἡλιος/hēlios meaning "sun" with αγγελος/angelos meaning "angel". Gould did not specify a type species but in 1855 George Gray designated the type as Trochilus clarissae Longuemare which is Ornismya clarisse Longuemare, 1841, Longuemare's sunangel.
The genus contains the following nine species:
Orange-throated sunangel, Heliangelus mavors – Colombia and Venezuela
Amethyst-throated sunangel, Heliangelus amethysticollis – south Ecuador to northwest Bolivia
Longuemare's sunangel, Heliangelus clarisse – east Colombia and west Venezuela
Merida sunangel, Heliangelus spencei – Mérida (northwest Venezuela)
Gorgeted sunangel, Heliangelus strophianus – southwest Colombia and northwest Ecuador
Tourmaline sunangel, Heliangelus exortis – Colombia and northwest Ecuador
Flame-throated sunangel, Heliangelus micraster – Ecuador and Peru
Purple-throated sunangel, Heliangelus viola – Ecuador and Peru
Royal sunangel, Heliangelus regalis – north Peru
The Bogotá sunangel was formerly placed in this genus. It is regarded as a hybrid specimen by AviList based on a study published in 2018 by Jorge Pérez-Emán and colleagues.
