Broad-tailed

Common name: Broad-tailed Hummingbird
Scientific name: Selasphorus platycercus
Clades: Mellisugini - Bees

The Broad-tailed Hummingbird is 10 cm (4 inches) in length. Weighing around 3.6 grams (0.13 oz), the female tends to be slightly larger than the male.

Broad-tailed Hummingbirds breed at higher elevations in the southern and central Rocky Mountains, eastern California, and Mexico. There is a short flowering season in the mountains of the western United States and a chilling nocturnal climate, so selecting the appropriate microclimate and being able to undergo torpor are essential survival skills. Most common in shrubby habitats with adjacent forests and open subalpine meadows across its range. Insects are caught on the wing or snatched from vegetation, as well as nectar, which it avoids recent visits to flowers. During aggressive territorial displays, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds perform spectacular aerial displays-a series of high climbs, dives, and hovers, accompanied by loud wing trills.

taken in Guatemala

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taken in the United States