Selasphorus heloisa (R.Lesson & Delattre, 1839)

Taxonomy and Basic Size

The bumblebee hummingbird (scientific name Selasphorus heloisa, originally described by R.Lesson & Delattre in 1839) is 5.9 to 7.5 cm (2.3 to 3.0 in) long and weighs 2 to 2.7 g (0.071 to 0.095 oz), making it one of the smallest hummingbirds.

Both sexes of both recognized subspecies share a short, straight, blackish bill and a small white spot behind the eye.

Nominate Male Upperparts

Males of the nominate subspecies (S. h. heloisa) have metallic bronze green to golden bronze upperparts.

Nominate Male Gorget

Their throat patch (gorget) is metallic magenta purple, transitioning to bluish purple at the edges, with longer rear-facing feathers that flare outwards and backwards.

Nominate Male Underparts

Their flanks are light reddish cinnamon with a bronze tint, while the rest of their underparts are dull white to grayish white.

Nominate Male Central Tail Feathers

The central pair of tail feathers are bronzy green with some reddish cinnamon at the base.

The next pair are reddish cinnamon on the basal half and black on the outer half, often with a bronzy green band separating the two colors.

Nominate Male Outer Tail Feathers

The remaining tail feathers are reddish cinnamon at the base, black in the middle (again often with an intervening bronzy green band), and have a wide white tip.

Nominate Female Upperparts

Females of the nominate subspecies also have metallic bronze green to golden green upperparts.

Nominate Female Throat and Underparts

Their chin and throat are white with many scattered metallic bronze spots.

Their flanks have more reddish cinnamon than those of nominate males, and the rest of the underparts are dull white to grayish white with a reddish cinnamon tint on the undertail coverts.

Nominate Female Tail

Compared to males, the female's tail has less, duller reddish cinnamon and more black, and the tips of the outer tail feathers are off-white rather than bright white.

S. h. margarethae Size Difference

The second subspecies, S. h. margarethae, is smaller than the nominate.

S. h. margarethae Male Plumage

Males have plumage similar to the nominate, but differ in having a dark amethyst violet gorget, pure white (rather than grayish white) underparts, and light buff (rather than reddish cinnamon) flanks.

S. h. margarethae Female Plumage

Females of S. h. margarethae have smaller metallic spots on the throat, light buff (rather than cinnamon) flanks and undertail coverts, and pure white tips on the tail feathers.

Overall Range

The bumblebee hummingbird is native to both of Mexico's major mountain ranges.

Nominate Subspecies Distribution

The nominate subspecies occurs in northeastern, central, and southern Mexico, ranging from Tamaulipas to Guerrero and Oaxaca.

S. h. margarethae Distribution

S. h. margarethae is found in northwestern and western Mexico, ranging from Sinaloa and Chihuahua to Jalisco.

US Occurrence Record

There is a single documented record of the species from the Huachuca Mountains in southeastern Arizona, United States.

Habitat

This species lives in a variety of montane habitats, including the interiors, edges, and clearings of semi-humid to humid pine-oak forest, evergreen forest, cloudforest, and humid scrubland.

Elevation Range

It occurs at elevations between 1,500 and 3,000 m (4,900 and 9,800 ft).