Broad-billed hummingbird

There are around 360 described species of hummingbirds that can be further categorized into nine different clades. The emerald clade formed between 10 and 15 million years ago and has the largest diversity of species. Swainson specified the type locality as "Table land ?" where he included a question mark. This species probably does not occur there and in 1939 the American ornithologist Robert Moore designated the type locality as the Valley of Mexico near Mexico City. The species name combines the Latin latus meaning "broad" with -rostris meaning "-billed". Subspecies The North American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society (AOS), the International Ornithological Committee (IOC), and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) recognize these three subspecies of broad-billed hummingbird: • C. l. magicus (Mulsant and Verreaux, J, 1872) – southwest USA, Sonora, Sinaloa and Nayarit (northwest Mexico) • C. l. propinquus Moore, RT 1939 – Guanajuato and north Michoacán (central Mexico) • C. l. latirostris Swainson, 1827 – Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí to Veracruz (east Mexico) These three taxonomic systems previously included two more subspecies, what are now the Tres Marias hummingbird (C. lawrencei) and the turquoise-crowned hummingbird (C. doubledayi) but by mid-2022 had recognized them as separate species based on 2014 and 2017 publications. The broad-billed hummingbird has hybridized with two different species: Rivoli's hummingbird (Eugenes fulgens) and the Violet-crowned hummingbird (Amazilia violiceps). == Description ==

The broad-billed hummingbird is a small hummingbird about long. It weighs only 3–4 grams, with the male weighing slightly more than the female. It has a long, bright reddish coloured bill that has a black tip. The adult male's tail is blackish-blue and broad. The flight feathers are brownish-gray. The adult female has a pale belly and has a white eyestripe behind her eye. Her tail feathers are white-tipped. The bill of the male is shorter but brighter red. As for size, both the juvenile and adult males have larger wings and tails than the female. The hatchings have a brown body and orange downy feathers and an orange bill. This noise can be done while perching or in flight. The males display call is a whining zing - but little is known about its song. == Distribution and habitat ==

In the United States, C. l. latirostris lives along streamsides and oak woodlands. It prefers areas with streamside groves and dense vegetation, as well as open oak woodlands in lower canyons. There have been rare sightings in the fall and winter months in Southern California, Texas, and even rarely in Oregon, Idaho, Colorado and the East Coast. == Behaviour ==

Diet The broad-billed hummingbird eats both nectar and insects. The hummingbird is also known to visit sugar-water hummingbird feeders. There is little available information regarding the broad-billed hummingbird eating insects. However, one study showed that even when there is an abundance of insects, the hummingbirds prefer to feed from flowers if available. In Guadalupe Canyon, Mexico, the hummingbirds were only seen eating flying Diptera and Ephemeroptera. Breeding Broad-billed hummingbirds reproduce sexually through mates choice. To attract a mate, the male will perform a "pendulum display" to the female. This display consists of the male broad-billed hummingbird hovering in front of the female and flying back and forth 4 times in repeated arcs, just like a pendulum. In the United States, there are usually two brood attempts per year, in mid-April to mid-to-late June and then again in July to mid-August. These dates overlap with the peak nectar availability in the broad-bill hummingbirds' habitats. In Arizona, pairs breed in semi-open habitats at 914 to 1524 meters in elevation. In southern Mexico, the species breeds over a long period of time. The bird's sex organs have been shown to be able to breed from January to August. In Sonora and western Mexico, breeding starts mid-January, peaking in Mid March and ending in August. The broad-billed hummingbird typically creates a nest within two meters of the ground. In Guadalupe Canyon, most nests were found to be at an average height of 1.1 meter above the ground. Although the height from the ground matters to the mothers, the nesting habitats have been found at many elevations. One study found four nests between 14 meters, in Sinaloa, to 442 meters, in Sonora. Nest site selection is thought to be less specific in individuals living towards the southern part of the range. The nests themselves are constructed only by the females. The female will weave nesting material (spider web, seeds, grasses, and dried leaves and flowers) into a nest and shape it with her body. The nest is about 2.5 cm tall, with an interior diameter of 1.9 cm. The interior is lined with materials such as white plant down, plant stems, leaves, plant blooms and even lichen. Once ready, the female broad-billed hummingbird will lay two eggs into her nest. The eggs of C. latirostris are smooth and white. On average, the eggs measure 12 by 8 millimeters. Although uncertain, it's believed that the female incubates the eggs for more than 2 weeks. After hatching, in Guadalupe Canyon the females spent about 60% of each hour at her nest. The largest causes of nest mortality are due to predation on eggs and nestlings, abandonment of nest before egg and failure for eggs to hatch. There is little known information available regarding incubation, hatching, growth and fledgling of the broad-billed hummingbird. == References ==