Costa's hummingbird
Calypte costae
Identification Tips:
- Length: 3 inches
- Long, straight, thin bill
- Small hummingbird
- Bright green back and crown
- White underparts with greenish flanks
Adult male:
- Iridescent purple crown and gorget, with long pointed extention far down
neck
- Entirely dark tail
Female/Immature:
- White chin and underparts
- Dark tail with white tips on outer tail feathers
Similar species:
The adult male Lucifer Hummingbird is similar in
plumage to the adult male Costa's, but is easily separated in the
narrow zone of overlap between the two species by its strongly
decurved bill, green crown and deeply forked tail. The female Lucifer is
strongly buffy below and has a decurved bill and forked tail.
The female Costa's is similar to the female and immature Anna's,
but typically is smaller, with a cleaner throat and whiter
underparts. Archilochus hummingbird females are also similar but
tend to have streaked throats. Female Costa's are separable also
by subtleties of tail pattern and call notes.
Length and wingspan from: Robbins, C.S., Bruun, B., Zim, H.S., (1966). Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company, Inc.