.
	(Ross's Gull header by Dave Hawkins)

Related Articles • Winter Hummingbirds • Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds • Things that make you go humm • World Birding Gallery | World Rarities Gallery • More Feature Birding Articles Latest Birding Books >> Latest Book Reviews >> Droll Yankees Little Flyer 2 Hummingbird Feeder - $ 20.49 From: Online Nature Mall Window Hummer-2 Hummingbird Feeder - $ 19.99 From: Online Nature Mall		Hummingbirds Surfbirds photofile Costa's Hummingbird by Birdseekers from Surfbirds Galleries Brian J Small Hummingbirds are one of the avian wonders of the world.  From the diminutive Bee Hummingbird in Cuba (probably the smallest bird in the world) to the Giant Hummingbird of Chile.  Many exhibit wonderfully irridescent plumage that changes in varying light; some, like the Sword-billed Hummingbird, have remarkable adaptations for feeding.  An encounter, no matter how brief, leaves a lasting memory. There is something in the region of 320 species of hummingbird, occuring only in the New World and ranging from Alaska and Labrador in the north to Tierra del Fuego in the south; from Barbados in the east to the Juan Fernandes islands in the west.  The great majority live between 10°N and 25°S, with Ecuador and Colombia having the greatest diversity. Fact file 320 species in 112 genera, 63 of which are represented by only one species; 88 genera occur in S America, 24 to the north, in N America, C America and the Caribbean islands in weight they range largely between 2g (e.g. Bee Hummingbird) and 9g, but the largest weighs 20g (Giant Hummingbird) wingbeat rates vary from 22 to 78 beats per second; in level flight they reach c.45kmh; such a high wing-beat rate coupled with their small size, results in a high metabolism requiring the intake of energy-rich foods; in order to conserve energy at night hummingbirds become torpid, when their body temperature drops to that of the surrounding air most nest in small simple cups attached to twigs (sometimes overhead powercables); some like the hillstars of the High Andes nest in small caves from which they hang their nests, some hang theirs from the underside of leaves most (119 species) nest from sea level to 1525m; less (26 species) nest 1525m up to 2580m; 62 species occur from 2580m up to 3500m; and some have been recorded up to 4000m above sea level some undertake long distance movements: the Ruby-throated Hummingbird traverses 1000km across the Gulf of Mexico; the Rufous Hummingbird migrates 3500km from its breeding area in Alaska to southern Mexico; the Green-backed Firecrown, which breeds in the Straits of Magellan moves north in the Austral winter to as far north as 23°S.  Many perform altitudinal movements or local movements dependent upon flowering of trees all feed by extracting nectar from flowers with specialized bills and tongues; nectar forms a large part of hummingbirds diet, many plants in S America have evolved or adapted to allow pollination via hummingbirds, e.g. Heliconia; small insects and spiders supplement the diet to varying degrees, and this variation can lead to subtly different ecological niches being inhabited by similar species hummingbirds are polygamous, the males display either via song or songflight, often at traditional leks; the females, in all but one species, are thought to build the nest, incubate, and rear the young unaided by the male At Surfbirds, we have been lucky enough to have had images of over 100 species posted, and in order to show them all in their glory we have put together this database of them,  We would very much like to expand on this, so if you can fill any of the gaps in the missing species, we would love to have more (please post your photos in one of our many galleries World Birding Gallery | World Rarities Gallery). Thank you in particular to those photographers who regularly update the world photo galleries: Nick Athanas; Sam Woods; Mark Gurney, Colin Bushell, Pete Morris, Mark Sutton, Julian Hough, Janos Olah jr, but there are many others. I have also included one or two females, to illustrate the sexual dimorphism of most hummingbird species – for some species we only have female-type plumages.  Also included are one or two non-breeding males and juveniles.  The irridescence of male plumage in varying light is illustrated well by the Bee Hummingbird and Ecuadorian Hillstar.  There is one image of a hybrid – hummingbirds are thought to hybridize fairly frequently at times. The images here illustrate the beauty of hummingbirds.  Look at the extravagance of the coquettes; the bill of the Sword-billed; the minuteness of the Bee Hummingbird; the sheer extravagance of the colours of many.  One thing the images cannot show is the precarious existence of many species – hummingbirds live on the very edge of survival.  With so much habitat destruction and disturbance in South America it is of no surprise that the status of many species is currently listed as being of concern by Birdlife International.  Two species are listed as recently extinct, Brace’s Emerald was seen only once in 1877.  Of more immediate concern are the 28 species currently listed as being Critically endangered (CR), Endangered (EN) or Vulnerable (VN) on their Red Data list – eight are Critically endangered.  A further 19 species are listed as Near Threatened (NT) – 15% of hummingbird species are threatened or near threatened.  We are fortunate here to have images of six from the first group and four from the latter. Photo Database Allen's Hummingbird Amethyst-throated Sunangel Amethyst Woodstar Amazilia Hummingbird Andean Emerald Andean Hillstar Anna's Hummingbird Antillean Crested Hummingbird Bahama Woodstar Bearded Helmetcrest Bee Hummingbird Berylline Hummingbird Black Jacobin Black-billed Streamertail Black-breasted Puffleg Black-chinned Hummingbird Black-crested Coquette Black-eared Fairy Black-tailed Trainbearer Black-throated Mango Blue-capped Hummingbird Blue-chested Hummingbird Blue-headed Hummingbird Blue-mantled Thornbill Blue-tailed Emerald Booted Racket-tail Brazilian Ruby Broad-billed Hummingbird Broad-tailed Hummingbird Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer Bronze-tailed Thornbill Brown Inca Brown Violetear Buff-bellied Hummingbird Buff-tailed Coronet Buff-winged Starfrontlet Buffy Hummingbird Calliope Hummingbird Chestnut-breasted Coronet Cinnamon Hummingbird Collared Inca Coppery Metaltail Coppery-bellied Puffleg Coppery-headed Emerald Costa's Hummingbird Crimson Topaz Cuban Emerald Ecuadorian Hillstar Empress Brilliant Esmeraldas Woodstar Fawn-breasted Brilliant Festive Coquette Fiery-throated Hummingbird Frilled Coquette Garden Emerald Giant Hummingbird Glowing Puffleg Golden-breasted Puffleg Gorgeted Sunangel Gorgeted Woodstar Great Sapphirewing Green-fronted Lancebill Green Thorntail Green-and-white Hummingbird Green Violet-ear Green-breasted Mango Green-crowned Brilliant Green-crowned Woodnymph Green-tailed Emerald Green-throated Carib Grey-bellied Comet Grey-tailed Mountain-gem Hooded Visorbearer Hyacinth Visorbearer Jamaican Mango Long-tailed Sylph Little Woodstar Lucifer Hummingbird Magnificent Hummingbird Mangrove Hummingbird Many-spotted Hummingbird Mexican Sheartail Mountain Avocetbill Mountain Velvetbreast Neblina Metaltail Oasis Hummingbird Olivaceous Thornbill Planalto Hermit Purple-backed Sunbeam Purple-bibbed Whitetip Purple-chested Hummingbird Purple-throated Carib Purple-throated Mountain-gem Purple-throated Woodstar Rainbow-bearded Thornbill Red-billed Streamertail | immature here Red-tailed Comet Royal Sunangel Ruby-throated Hummingbird Rufous-breasted Hermit Rufous-breasted Sabrewing Rufous-crested Coquette Rufous-tailed Hummingbird Rufous Hummingbird Sapphire-vented Puffleg Saw-billed Hermit Scintillant Hummingbird Shining Sunbeam Short-tailed Woodstar Snowcap Sombre Hummingbird Speckled Hummingbird Steely-vented Hummingbird Stripe-breasted Starthroat Stripe-tailed Hummingbird Swallow-tailed Hummingbird Sword-billed Hummingbird Tourmaline Sunangel Tufted Coquette Tumbes Hummingbird Tyrian Metaltail Velvet-purple Coronet Violet Sabrewing Violet-bellied Hummingbird Violet-capped Woodnymph Violet-crowned Hummingbird Violet-fronted Brilliant Violet-headed Hummingbird Violet-tailed Sylph Volcano Hummingbird Western Emerald Western Long-tailed Hermit White-bellied Mountain-gem White-bellied Woodstar White-eared Hummingbird White-necked Jacobin White-tailed Hillstar White-tipped Sicklebill White-vented Plumeleteer White-whiskered Hermit Xantus's Hummingbird Other sites for good hummingbird pictures:- http://www.greglasley.net/hummerix.html http://www.hummingbirds.net/gallery.html http://www.lhostelaw.com/0210cr/cr2002.htm http://www.hummingbirds.net/zittrich.html http://www.hummingbirdsociety.org/photogallery/photogallery.asp http://www.schmoker.org/BirdPics/Hummers.html   Back to Top Of Article