Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird, adult male

About the photographs

About the map

Play sound from this species

Ruby-throated Hummingbird, adult female

Ruby-throated Hummingbird eggs

Menu

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

The only species of hummingbird that breeds in eastern North America, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird is found throughout the eastern deciduous and mixed forests. It flies nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico to winter in Central America.

Description

• Tiny bird.
• Back iridescent green.
• Hovers at flowers.
• Male with brilliant iridescent red throat.

• Size: 7-9 cm (3-4 in)
• Wingspan: 8-11 cm (3-4 in)
• Weight: 2-6 g (0.07-0.21 ounces)

Sex Differences

Male with red throat, female with white. Female with white tips to tail feathers. Female larger.

Sound

Rapid squeaky chipping. Humming sound from wings.

Conservation Status

Populations appear stable.

Other Names

Colibri à gorge rubis (French)
Colibrí garganta de rubí, Mansoncito garganta de fuego, Chupaflor rubí (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The Ruby-throated Hummingbird beats its wings 53 times a second.

• The extremely short legs of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird prevent it from walking or hopping. The best it can do is shuffle along a perch. Nevertheless, it scratches its head and neck by raising its foot up and over its wing.

• The Ruby-throated Hummingbird does not show a strong preference for any particular color of feeder. Instead, it prefers specific feeder locations.

Sources used to construct this page:

Robinson, T. R., R. R. Sargent, and M. B. Sargent. 1996. Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris). In The Birds of North America, No. 204 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.