Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Adult male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are easy to identify. However, it's difficult to distinguish adult females from juvenile males and females in summer and fall. They all look alike!

Adult Male
Crown: metallic dark green.
Throat: metallic ruby-red
Back: metallic green or bronze-green
Wings: near-black
Breast and belly: usually brownish-gray
Flanks: metallic bronze-green
Tail: Forked. Feathers pointed and all dark (no white tips)

Adult Female
Crown: metallic dark green
Throat: white, or with occasional faint tan streaking
Back: metallic green or bronze-green
Wings: near-black
Breast and belly: white
Flanks: light brown
Tail: Fan-shaped. Feathers all rounded, with white tips on the outer 3 feathers on each side of tail.

Juvenile Male
Looks identical to adult female, except:

Throat usually has some dark streaking (green or black, sometimes tan) that appears later in summer. Nearly all birds with noticeably streaked throats are young males.

Throat of some young males may show one or several red throat feathers in late summer, but do not get a full red gorget until their first winter.

Juvenile Female
Looks identical to adult female.