Description

Distinguishing Features - Upper parts, shiny green; throat, bright red; breast and mid-abdomen, greyish white; sides breyish brown with glossy green. Tail, forked. Female similar to male but throat greyish white and tail not forked.

Size - 7.5 - 9.4 cm (3 - 3.75 in).

Habitat

Woodland clearings, gardens and orchards. In understory with flowering plants.

Nesting

Tiny, cup-shaped on a tree branch, made of bud scales, bits of lichen held together with spider silk. Eggs, 2; white. Incubation period 15 - 17 days.

Notes

The tiniest of boreal forest species, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird gets its name from the bright red throat patch and the characteristic hum of its rapidly beating wings. They sometimes feed on small insects but prefer the nectar of flowering plants or sugar water from backyard feeders.

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