Allen's

Common name: Allen's Hummingbird
Scientific name: Selasphorus sasin
Clades: Mellisugini - Bees

Let's break down Selasphorus sasin:

1. Selasphorus: This is the genus name, derived from Greek roots. It comes from "selas" meaning "brightness" or "light," and "phoros" meaning "bearing" or "carrying." The name likely refers to the brightness or vivid coloration of birds in this genus, such as the way their feathers shimmer or reflect light.

2. Sasin: This is the species name, and it is believed to be derived from the Latinized form of a native American word, potentially from a tribe name or another indigenous language. The exact meaning of "sasin" is not entirely clear.

Therefore, Selasphorus sasin can be interpreted as "the bright-bearing sasin", referring to a hummingbird with vivid, light-reflecting feathers and possibly named after indigenous people or locations associated with the bird.

So, Selasphorus sasin sedentarius can be interpreted as "the stationary Allen's Hummingbird" or "the sedentary bright-bearing hummingbird", referring to a non-migratory or more locally residing subspecies of Selasphorus sasin (Allen's Hummingbird).

This subspecies is typically found in more specific, limited areas, unlike other hummingbird populations that may migrate over long distances.

Allen's Hummingbirds are among the smallest birds, they are only 7.5 to 9 cm (3-3.5 in.) long and typically weigh a little over 3 grams (0.1 oz.).

Extremely similar to widespread Rufous Hummingbird; identical in plumage except for males' solid green back (which can be shown by Rufous too.) Breeds only along a narrow strip of coastal California and southern Oregon. See also: Rufous Hummingbird. On females and immature males, the only way to separate them from Rufous is by the shape of the tail feathers, which is extremely difficult to determine without good photographs.
Identification by eBird & Merlin

2 subspecies:

1. S. s. sasin
   Distribution Breeds from extreme sw. Oregon to s. California; winters in sw. Mexico

2. S. s. sedentarius
   Distribution Largely resident on the Channel Is. and on the nearby mainland of California, from the Palos Verdes Peninsula south through Orange County; post-breeding birds have been collected in Santa Monica Mts., 65 km from breeding grounds on in Palos Verdes (Stiles 1972), and birds that breed on San Miguel I. may winter on neighboring Santa Rosa I., an island that supports groves of introduced winter-blooming eucalyptus (Jones and Collins in press).

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