Migration Anna’s hummingbird in flight | Image by Bryan Hanson from PixabayĪlong with the Allen’s and black-chinned hummingbirds, Anna’s are just one of three species in the United States that may not migrate and live in the same place all year.įor those that do migrate, you can see by the range map above that Anna’s either don’t migrate at all or only a short distance to find a more suitable breeding ground.
Once hatched, she cares for the babies for 2-3 weeks until they fledge. The nest is just big enough for her to sit in and incubate her 2 eggs for about 16 days until they hatch. She builds the nest out of delicate plant material and uses spiderwebs to hold everything together. The female Anna’s hummingbird is the one to build the nest, while the male fiercely protects his territory. The male establishes a territory with suitable shelter and food sources, and attracts a female through the mating rituals we mentioned above. The mating season for Anna’s hummingbirds is between December and June. Provide the hummingbirds what they need to survive and your backyard could be a hummingbird habitat. Providing them with food and shelter only helps the Anna’s population. Like other hummingbirds, individual birds are known for returning to the same feeding or nesting spots year after year. Anna’s hummingbirds have adapted to living and thriving near humans. Habitat Anna’s hummingbird | Image by Veronika Andrews from PixabayĪnna’s hummingbirds are common in a variety of habitats within their range including backyard gardens, open woods, coastal sage scrub, oak savannas, city parks, and other rural areas. Nesting females have been known to eat more than a thousand insects in a single day. Hummingbirds also flap their wings 62 times per second, visit as many as 2,000 flowers per day, and consume more than half their body-weight in bugs and nectar each day. Hummingbirds burn between 660 calories per day, so they need to eat a lot. In addition, they are happy to accept any nectar we want to provide them. They are known for taking flying insects right out of the air. In much of this hummingbird’s range it is a year-round resident and does not migrate, so you can keep your feeders out all year long.Īnna’s hummingbirds feed on nectar from flowers but also eat tree sap and a variety of small insects like mosquitoes and leafhoppers. They can even be found as far north as the Alaskan panhandle in the winter months. Since then, the hummingbird’s range has been growing. It’s believed that due to the planting of exotic trees, plants, and flowers, the species was able to greatly expand it’s breeding range. For most of the early 20th century the Anna’s only bred in parts of Southern California and Baja California. The males will even run off large insects like bumble bees or hawk moths that are simply trying to feed nearby.Īnna’s hummingbirds are found near the Pacific coast, in some Southwestern states like Arizona and Utah, and also Pacific Northwest states like Oregon and Washington. The below video shows this behavior.Īnna’s are known for being very territorial, especially the males who will fiercely defend their nests. It’s kind of like he’s buzzing the tower, apparently this impresses her. The male will slowly climb to an altitude of 30-40 meters high then rocket down towards the female swooping just inches from her. They have a metallic green color on top with a touch of reddish-pink feathers on the throat.Īn interesting behavior of the Anna’s hummingbird is the unique courtship displays that the males perform for the female during mating rituals. Female Female Anna’s hummingbird | Image by Bryan Hanson from Pixabayįemale and all immature Anna’s hummingbirds look very similar to one another. The brilliant iridescence that you often see, especially in males, is caused by a refraction of diresunlight. Male Anna’s hummingbirds have a rose-pink head that can look like a dull brown color if the sunlight isn’t hitting the feathers just right. Male Male Anna’s hummingbird | Image by Bryan Hanson from Pixabay Anna’s hummingbird can easily be attracted to backyard feeders just like the more widespread ruby-throated hummingbird.Īnna’s hummingbirds are covered in mostly green and gray, though the males and females are easy to tell apart if you know what to look for. These medium-sized hummingbirds are the most common found along the Pacific coast. Facts about Anna’s hummingbirds Anna’s hummingbird overview Anna’s hummingbird | Image by Veronika Andrews from Pixabay
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