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Anna's Hummingbird
Calypte anna
36.0983, -115.254
Field Notes
Description:
This is a medium-sized hummingbird, characterized by an iridescent crimson gorget in the male…1st photo above. Females also have similar markings on the throat, not as prominent as the male…2nd photo. We have several breeding pairs who regularly visit our feeders in southern Nevada, and the two pictured pretty much ‘own’ our front yard. Those pictured are daily visitors all year round.
Habitat:
This bird was spotted in an urban area…covered with lawns, trees (mostly pine and palms), and gardens. The surrounding area is the Mojave Desert, in Nevada. These hummers, according to on-line sources, in the early to mid 1900’s were confined to the northern Baja in Mexico into southern California, hugging the Pacific coast. With the proliferation of shrubs and trees not endemic to the area which benefitted the birds, this species has expanded their territory north along the Pacific coast all the way up to Canada. They have expanded east into Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico, and possibly further. They are as much at home in the city, mountains and desert, per my observations.
Notes:
Anna’s are year-round residents in southern Nevada. They have our area all to themselves in the winter and early spring months until late March and early April. They are then joined by Black-chinned, Costa's, and a few Broadtails. Total chaos breaks loose when the Rufous hummers migrate through in mid to late summer. They survive through our several weeks during the winter in which temps get down into the ’20’s and teens. There are very few flowers, but they are adept at eating small insects that live in small crevices in stucco walls and trees. They as well, I am told, eat tree sap. From a survival standpoint, these birds have done quite well!
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