Grey-chinned Hermit (Phaethornis griseogularis) [XC227571]
by Niels Krabbe from Finca Monteverde at Olinda II, Merida, Venezuela (song)
Grey-chinned Hermit (Phaethornis griseogularis) [XC257799]
by Rolf A. de By from Napo: km 11.6 Narupa-Loreto road, Ecuador (flight call)
Subspecies
Phaethornis griseogularis (Sibley and Monreo 1990, 1993) was provisionally split into Phaethornis griseogularis and Phaethornis porcullae by Stotz et al. (1996) but this treatment has not been adopted, following SACC (2005).
One of the small hermits sometimes separated in genus Pygmornis. Closest to Stripe-throated Hermit (Phaethornis striigularis). Other close relatives include Black-throated Hermit (Phaethornis atrimentalis), Reddish Hermit (Phaethornis ruber) and White-browed Hermit (Phaethornis stuarti). Subspecies zonura and porcullae are rare in scientific collections, and latter may be classed as separate species when more detailed information is available. Subspecies zonura has been treated as synonym of nominate griseogularis.
The following 3 subspecies are recognised:
griseogularis Gould, 1851 - West of Andes in Colombia; eastern Andes from Colombia to northern Peru; southern and south-eastern Venezuela and adjacent northern Brazil on several isolated mountains.
zonura Gould, 1860 - North-western Peru (Cajamarca and adjacent Amazonas).
porcullae Carriker, 1935 - Western Andean mountains in north-western Peru (Tumbes, Piura and Lambayeque). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Porculla Hermit (Phaethornis porcullae).
BirdLife International Species Factsheet