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.
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.
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.
Species | Image |
---|---|
Hooded Visorbearer (more images) | |
Hyacinth Visorbearer (more images) | |
Indigo-capped Hummingbird (more images) | |
Jamaican Mango (more images) | |
Long-tailed Sylph (more images) | |
Little Woodstar (more images) | |
Lucifer Hummingbird (more images) | |
Magnificent Hummingbird (more images) | |
Mangrove Hummingbird (more images) | |
Many-spotted Hummingbird (more images) | |
Mexican Sheartail (more images) | |
Mountain Avocetbill (more images) | |
Mountain Velvetbreast (more images) | |
Neblina Metaltail (more images) | |
Oasis Hummingbird (more images) | |
Olivaceous Thornbill (more images) | |
Planalto Hermit (more images) | |
Purple-backed Sunbeam (more images) | |
Purple-bibbed Whitetip (more images) | |
Purple-chested Hummingbird (more images) | |
Purple-throated Carib (more images) | |
Purple-throated Mountain-gem (more images) | |
Purple-throated Woodstar (more images) | |
Rainbow-bearded Thornbill (more images) | |
Red-billed Streamertail (more images) | |
Red-tailed Comet (more images) | |
Royal Sunangel (more images) | |
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (more images) | |
Rufous-breasted Hermit (more images) | |
Rufous-breasted Sabrewing (more images) | |
Rufous-crested Coquette (more images) | |
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (more images) | |
Rufous Hummingbird (more images) |