Broad-billed Hummingbird
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| Cynanthus latirostris Swainson, 1827 |
The Broad-billed Hummingbird, Cynanthus latirostris, is a medium-sized hummingbird. It is 9-10 cm long, and weighs approximately 3-4 g.
Adults are colored predominantly a metallic green on their upperparts and breast. The undertail coverts are predominately white. The tail is darkly colored and slightly forked. The bill of the male is straight and very slender. It is red in coloration, and shows a black tip. His throat is a deep blue. The female is less colorful than the male. She usually shows a white eye stripe.
The breeding habitat is in arid scrub of southeastern Arizona-(the Madrean sky islands of AZ, New Mexico and Sonora) in the United States to southwestern Mexico. Outside it's breeding range, it will occasionally stray from southernmost California to Texas and Louisiana. The female builds a nest in a protected location in a shrub or tree. Females lay two white eggs. This hummingbird is partially migratory, retreating from northernmost areas during the winter.
These birds feed on nectar from flowers and flowering trees using a long extendable tongue or catch insects on the wing.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Cynanthus latirostris. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
