Anna's Hummingbird: how to recognise it
A bird of North America. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © abcdefgewing · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Calypte anna
- Family
- Hummingbirds
- Size
- About 10 cm
- Habitat
- Gardens, scrub, chaparral and woodland edges
- Found in
- North America
The key marks
Male has a rose-red crown and throat patch, and a green back. Costa's Hummingbird has a violet crown and a throat patch that flares out at the sides, and is smaller with a shorter bill. Females are hard to tell apart.
Voice
Male sings a scratchy, squeaky song; call is a sharp 'chik'.
Good to know
In his display the male climbs about 30 m high, dives steeply and makes a loud chirp with his tail feathers at the bottom.
Do not confuse with
Compare it with the Costa's Hummingbird. Look at the marks above one by one rather than the overall colour, and practise telling the two apart with real photos.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in gardens, scrub, chaparral and woodland edges. It is especially common in California and Arizona. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.