Lucifer hummingbird
Calothorax lucifer
Identification Tips:
- Length: 3.25 inches
- Long, thin, decurved bill
- Green upperparts
- White spot behind eye
- United States ranged restricted to southeastern Arizona and west
Texas. Stray elsewhere.
Adult male:
- Purple throat (black in poor light) longest at sides
- Grayish underparts with greenish and rusty sides
- Black, deeply forked tail
Adult female:
- Pale throat
- Buffy breast
- Pale belly
- Green tail-outer feathers have rusty base, black middle and white tip
- Immature male similar to female but may have a few purple throat feathers
Similar species:
Unlike other North American hummingbirds, the Lucifer Hummingbird has a
distinctly decurved bill. The male Lucifer Hummingbird can be told by its
purple throat and forked tail. The female has a buffy breast unlike similar
species.
Length and wingspan from: Robbins, C.S., Bruun, B., Zim, H.S., (1966). Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company, Inc.