Allen's Hummingbird

Allen's hummingbird is one of the cutest hummingbirds. Let's start exploring them.

Image source: Google: All About Birds

Scientific name - Selasphorus sasin

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Aves
Family	Trochilidae
Genus	Selasphorus
Species	sasin

About-

This hummingbird is an orange rusty color bird. This hummingbird comes in the category of least concern but they are gradually decreasing. They are migratory birds. They have a mass of 3g. They can live up to 3-5 years. But the oldest Allens hummingbird was 12 years of age. Males are 3- 3.5 inches in length.

Habitat-

They are found in Southern Oregon and coastal California. They breed in coastal forests, brushwood, and Chaparral from sea 🌊  level to around 1,000 feet elevation. Males love to live in open areas and hold their territories while females love to live and make their nests with tree cover including eucalyptus, Redwood, and Douglas fir. 

Diet-

Like another hummingbird Allens hummingbird also love to eat nectar from flowers 🌺. They also feed on small insects 🐛, spiders 🕷️ , and flowers. They love to feed on gooseberries, currant, sage, eucalyptus, red monkeyflower, and many other plants 🍀. 

Migration -

These birds migrate to the north up the Pacific Coast in late winters ❄️ and South through the mountains 🗻  in summers ☀️. 

Identification -

Males are larger than females and have a reddish-orange throat which makes them look so much adorable. They have an orange belly, the tail if the male is spread out. They have green color back and rust color tail, forehead, sides, and bottom.

Females are smaller than males and have a metallic green color back and coppery sides. They are mostly green in color. 

Immature males and females both look are quite similar.

Mating and nesting -

Breeding can start in January in the southern part and last until early July. The males try to impress females by different methods like courtship flights - forth flight arc of 25 feet, with high-speed dive from 100 feet above to impress females. Some aggressive males start chasing other males and also other predators which are several times larger than themselves. After mating, they start building up their nest with plant fibers, weed streams, lichens, and spider web🕸️. Females lay 2 white eggs and they incubate them without the help of males. The incubation lasts for 15-17 days and the young one leaves the nest after 3 weeks of hatching.

Do hummingbirds remember people who feed them?

Yes, they remember several people and especially those who feed them, most of the time it is noticed that Allen's hummingbirds fly off your head to alert that the feeder is empty.