Masked flowerpiercer - perched, Hacienda El Bosque, Colombia

The masked flowerpiercer is a species of bird in the Thraupidae family. It is found in humid montane forest and scrub in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. Flowerpiercers got their name from the fact that they have a sharp hook on the tip of their upper mandible which they use to slice open the base of flowers to get at the nectar.