Subscribe

Hummingbirds — Anna’s & Black-chinned

(click on a photo to enlarge)

The last two species of the seven that have been frequenting our feeders are Anna’s (Calypte anna) and Black-chinned (Archilochus alexandri). Of the two, Anna’s has the potential of overwintering in our area. Last year the last hummingbird seen at our feeders was an Anna’s seen on December 3rd. I don’t think the winters are mild enough up here (elevation 4720′) to have one stay but I suppose it could happen. The Black-chinned is the only hummingbird of the seven that has nested here.

The adult male Anna’s sports quite a handsome hood which extends completely over the head to the back of the neck and the throat. Notice that the tail extends well beyond the wingtips. However, I haven’t seen an adult male since migration began so photo below is one taken in the Spring.

Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), adult male

We do have some male wannabes and they are almost completely hooded in rose red but not quite. Like all iridescent feathering on hummers, what you see depends on how the light reflects off the feathers. For instance, here is a young male Anna’s that shows no red on the top of the head, just darkish feathering.

Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), immature male

Here is the same bird from a different angle.

Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), immature male

And here is another male that is just beginning to color up. This is what I’m seeing mostly at the feeders now. Perhaps the mature adults will show up a bit later.

Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), immature male

The female Anna’s can have a patch of red feathers in her gorget but they are usually in a small, central spot. Still looking to photograph for one of those.

Second in number only to Rufous, our most common hummingbird, Black-chinned (Archilochus alexandri) spends the breeding season with us and I’ve documented a Black-chinned nest in a previous post, The Hummmingbird Nest. The least colorful of our hummingbirds, the male’s violet gorget feathers can be quite striking in the right light. Mostly you just see the dark head and I’ve often thought the name “Black-headed” would also suit this bird.

Here’s one showing just a hint of the rich purple on the gorget.

Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), adult male

And here’s a slightly better view.

Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), adult male

This immature male is beginning to show his gorget feathers.

Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), immature male

The females and immatures look quite similar, the obvious differences being the buffy color of the feather edges in the immatures. I’m calling this one an adult female:

Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), adult female

And this is an immature female (note the feather edges):

Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri), immature female

We’re detecting a drop in the numbers of hummers at the feeders this past week. Down from a high of 100 or so to about 50. You’d think this would mean a drop in the amount of sugar water I make daily but we have other visitors that crave the sweet nectar — bats! More on them in a future post.

Published by Arlene Ripley on September 5th, 2009 Tagged Arizona, Birds, Cochise County, Hummingbirds, Nature

Copyright © Arlene Ripley | Theme template Earthy by MandarinMusing and Headsetoptions