Lucifer Hummingbird

Lucifer Hummingbird, adult male; Portal, AZ; April

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A bird of the highlands of northern and central Mexico, the Lucifer Hummingbird is also found in south Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. It is the only member of its genus that regularly occurs in the United States.

Description

Small hummingbird. Long, down-curved bill. Green upperparts. Male has large throat that reflects purplish red. Female mostly white underneath, with variable amounts of buff on throat and breast.

• Size: 9 cm (4 in)
• Weight: 3-4 g (0.11-0.14 ounces)

Sex Differences

Male has large, bright magenta gorget covering throat area; female has white or buffy throat.

Sound

Chip notes, often strung together in pairs or series. Also a quiet "brzhee?brzhee."

Conservation Status

No specific conservation concern. Feeders, including those at Big Bend National Park, probably maintain United States populations at higher levels than would occur naturally.

Other Names

Colibrí Lucifer (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• Unlike other hummingbirds, which perform courtship displays near feeding areas, perches, or special sites for group displays, the male Lucifer Hummingbird performs its displays at the nest of a female.

Sources used to construct this page:

Peter E. Scott. 1994. Lucifer Hummingbird (Calothorax lucifer). In The Birds of North America, No. 134 (A. Poole and F. Gill, Eds.). Philadelphia: The Academy of Natural Sciences; Washington, D.C.: The American Ornithologists? Union.