Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Archilochus colubrisOrder: APODIFORMESFamily: Hummingbirds (Trochilidae)

General

Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Medium-sized hummingbird with iridescent green upperparts, head, and flanks. Underparts are pale gray with paler breast and green wash on sides and belly; throat is bright red with black chin. Tail is dark and forked. Female and juvenile are duller with white throats and white-edged, rounded tails; subadult male is similar but has dark flecks on throat.

Range and Habitat

Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Breeds from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast; only hummingbird that breeds east of the Mississippi River. Spends winters mainly in the tropics and rarely on the Gulf Coast. Found in woodlands, orchards, and gardens.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"chip-chip-chip-chip-chip"

Interesting Facts

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird female lays eggs about the size of peas.
These birds can fly fast either forward or backward and are also capable of hovering.
Their migration north appears to be timed according to the appearance of certain flowers along their route.
A group of hummingbirds has many collective nouns, including a "bouquet", "glittering", "hover", "shimmer", and a "tune" of hummingbirds.

Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Medium hummingbird, iridescent green upperparts, head, flanks. Underparts are pale gray, paler breast, green wash on sides, belly; throat is bright red with black chin. Tail is dark, forked. Feeds primarily on nectar. Direct and hovering flight with very rapid wing beats.

● Song: "chip-chip-chip-chip-chip"

● Foraging & Feeding: Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Feeds mostly on nectar, but also eats insects and spiders; preferred flowers include honeysuckle, petunias, nasturtiums, and lilacs, but is often attracted to red-flowered species. Consumes twice its body weight each day.

● Breeding & nesting: Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Two white eggs are laid in a nest woven from plant down, held together with spider silk, covered with lichens, and saddled to a tree branch, usually in a forest clearing. Eggs are incubated for 11 to 16 days by the female.

● Similar species: Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Broad-tailed Hummingbird has a duller red throat and lacks black chin. Female is distinguished from the following: Calliope Hummingbird has rufous on flanks and tail; Anna's Hummingbird is larger and has grayer breast; Costa's Hummingbird is smaller, stouter, and has pale eyebrows; Black-chinned Hummingbird has grayer crown and underparts.

Flight Pattern

Up to 75 rapid wing beats per second.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird Body Illustration

● Range & Habitat: Ruby-throated Hummingbird: Breeds from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast; only hummingbird that breeds east of the Mississippi River. Spends winters mainly in the tropics and rarely on the Gulf Coast. Found in woodlands, orchards, and gardens.

^BreedingSolitary nester

^PopulationCommon to fairly common

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight0.1 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America