Taken at Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum
Tucson,AZ 2010 with a Canon Powershot SX10IS

Broad-billed hummingbird reaches the northern limit of its breeding range in riparian canyons and foothills of southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico; it is relatively common up to about 5,000’ (1,500m) in varied habitats, from mesquite lowlands through higher-elevations stands of oaks, sycamores, and cottonwoods. Breeding birds are observed mostly from March to September; a few winter in the U.S.

VOICE Call a rattling tsi-tit, similar to Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

INTERESTING FACTS

• The intestine of a Broad-billed Hummingbird is hair thin and about two inches in length.
• These birds can consume up to 1.7 times their weight in nectar each day.
• At night, when they are unable to feed, they lower their body temperature and slow their metabolism, thus decreasing their need for food.
• A group of hummingbirds has many collective nouns, including a “bouquet", “glittering”, “hover”, “shimmer”, and "tune” of hummingbirds.