Xantus's Hummingbird
Encyclopedia
Xantus's Hummingbird, Basilinna xantusii, is a medium-sized hummingbird
. It is 8-9 cm long, and weighs approximately 3-4 g.
Adults are colored predominantly green on their upperparts and back. The tail is darkly colored and straight. The most prominent feature is the white eyestripe found in both males and females. The stripe is further enhanced by a black eyestripe below the white one. Both have cinnamon brown underparts, with the brown extending further up the throat in the female. Green replaces the brown in the throat of the male. The bill of the male is straight and very slender. It is red in coloration, and shows a black tip. His crown and face is bluish-black.
The breeding habitat occurs in various habitats of southern Baja Peninsula of Mexico
where it is considered endemic.
It has been recorded as a vagrant up the Pacific coast of North America
to British Columbia
in Canada
.
These birds feed on nectar from flower
s and flowering trees using a long extendable tongue or catch insect
s on the wing.
This hummingbird was named after John Xantus de Vesey (Xantus János), a Hungarian zoologist.
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
. It is 8-9 cm long, and weighs approximately 3-4 g.
Adults are colored predominantly green on their upperparts and back. The tail is darkly colored and straight. The most prominent feature is the white eyestripe found in both males and females. The stripe is further enhanced by a black eyestripe below the white one. Both have cinnamon brown underparts, with the brown extending further up the throat in the female. Green replaces the brown in the throat of the male. The bill of the male is straight and very slender. It is red in coloration, and shows a black tip. His crown and face is bluish-black.
The breeding habitat occurs in various habitats of southern Baja Peninsula of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
where it is considered endemic.
It has been recorded as a vagrant up the Pacific coast of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
These birds feed on nectar from flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s and flowering trees using a long extendable tongue or catch insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s on the wing.
This hummingbird was named after John Xantus de Vesey (Xantus János), a Hungarian zoologist.
External links
- Photo-Medium Res; (Article)
- Photo-Medium Res; Article www.geog.buffalo.edu
- Xantus's Hummingbird photo gallery VIREO Photo-High Res
- www.hummingbird.net
