Diet and Foraging

White-bellied Dacnis feed on small berries, nectar, and flying insects in the canopy (Hilty 2011). A monospecific flock was observed returning repeatedly, about 6 times in 2 hours, to a medium-height fruiting Miconia (Melastomataceae) in Venezuela; they would forage for 5-8 minutes before returning to the upper canopy, but only when other birds such as tanagers, manakins, and honeycreepers were present (Hilty 1999). They also consume the fruits of Ficus spp .

White-bellied Dacnis forages in the canopy and high outer foliage (Isler and Isler 1987, Sick 1993, Hilty 1999). They hang to inspect foliage and gleaning insects in the canopy, often from pinnately compound leaves from large legumes (Hilty 2011).