Fun Cinnamon Hummingbird Facts For Kids

Georgia Stone
Aug 29, 2023 By Georgia Stone
Originally Published on Oct 25, 2021
Cinnamon hummingbird facts for kids are educational!

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is a member of the hummingbird group and is medium-sized in nature. These hummingbirds are endemic to the American continents, where they are found in abundance and are a common occurrence in parks and fields.

Cinnamon hummingbirds are known for their dual-color tone and are considered to be one of the prettiest hummingbirds in existence. These birds have a diet that consists of nectar and insects and will often migrate locally in the search of food resources.

Despite their small stature, these birds are rather aggressive during the breeding season, especially the males, who defend their territories and often thwart off male competitors who trespass in an effort to breed with the females.

Currently, the population of this bird is seen as stable due to its vast population distribution and abundance of natural resources. However, they can go through a steep decline in population if human interference is left unchecked, causing habitat loss and displacement of these birds into newer territories.

If you like these true facts about the cinnamon hummingbird, be sure to check out true facts about the white-eared hummingbirds and Costa's hummingbird too!

Cinnamon Hummingbird Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a cinnamon hummingbird?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is a hummingbird species that is known for its dual-toned color pattern of bronze-green upperparts and cinnamon underparts. These birds also have a rufous tail with gold and green edging. These cinnamon-colored bird species can be found in a large range in their native habitat regions.

What class of animal does a cinnamon hummingbird belong to?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) belongs to the Aves class of animals. This class consists of numerous bird species.

How many cinnamon hummingbirds are there in the world?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is abundantly found in its native habitat range that includes countries like North America, New Mexico, Costa Rica, and Mexico, to name a few.

This widespread population distribution means that these cinnamon-colored bird species have a large population count, which according to IUCN Red List, stands at a range between 500,000-4,999,999 breeding and non-breeding hummingbirds.

Where does a cinnamon hummingbird live?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is a bird species that can be found evenly distributed in southern and central America in the countries of Belize, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, with a vagrant minute population in Costa Rica.

These birds are found in North America, mainly in New Mexico in the United States, and the country of Mexico. They are native to Pacific slopes and the Atlantic slopes and occur in lowland forests at an elevation of 5250 ft (1600.2 m).

These birds are endemic to the ecosystem of the continents of North America and South America.

What is a cinnamon hummingbird's habitat?

Cinnamon hummingbirds are native to deciduous and semideciduous forests and thorn forests. They can often be seen foraging for food or flying around looking for nesting spots to lay their eggs in semi-open countrysides, mostly alongside woodland forests.

In some cases, these birds often relocate from their natural range of forests and make homes in artificial formations like plantations and agricultural areas.

The cinnamon hummingbird is found at low elevations as well as high elevations as a form of local migration when resources are not easily available in the native range.

Who does a cinnamon hummingbird live with?

Like most species of hummingbirds found in Northern, Southern, and Central America, this medium-sized hummingbird, too, is solitary in nature. Individual hummingbirds showcase territorial behavior and will defend forests and gardens, which serve as a feeding ground for these birds to feed on the nectar of flowers.

This defense is applicable only to insects like butterflies or bees and against some larger hummingbird species that share the feeding range.

The male cinnamon hummingbird can often be heard signing solitary or in small groups near the edge of forests.

How long does a cinnamon hummingbird live?

The exact lifespan of the cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is not known as of now. However, according to the IUCN Red List, the generation gap of parent birds compared to juvenile or baby birds stands at four years. This generation gap can help in pinpointing the lifespan of this cinnamon-bellied bird species.

How do they reproduce?

Breeding in these hummingbirds species can occur at any time of the year as it depends on the location and abundance of natural resources available to them.

In western Mexico, breeding occurs during November-February, and in the Costa Rica region, it occurs during December-June.

Like most species of hummingbirds, the male cinnamon hummingbirds, too, do not participate in the construction of nests, incubation, or the care of younglings. The female will build the nest on horizontal branches and will use plant material to stick with spider webs and decorate the nest with lichen.

After mating, females will lay two eggs, and after the eggs are hatched, the female will dedicate herself to feeding and raising her babies by flying around in search of insects and flower nectar.

What is their conservation status?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) has a stable population because of its vast distribution in countries like Mexico and North America and other parts of its migration range, and as a result of this, it is believed to be thriving in these natural habitats. Currently, this bird is listed as of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Cinnamon Hummingbird Fun Facts

What do cinnamon hummingbirds look like?

This bird belongs to the medium-sized hummingbird family and has a bronze-green color tone, with green iridescence. This green tone begins below the eyes, and goes across the crown, and comes back to the rump. The body is tipped off with rufous tail feathers that are lined with gold and green edging.

The underparts are cinnamon-colored; this color takes shape from below the eye, down the chest and throat, and under the tail feathers. These birds have a long and slim, black-tipped bill that is curved down slightly.

How cute are they?

Hummingbirds are seen as adorable birds because of their tiny size and bright plumage. If we were to score them on a scale of one to five, these birds would score a solid five!

How do they communicate?

The communication method of the cinnamon hummingbird is unknown.

How big is a cinnamon hummingbird?

Cinnamon hummingbirds are medium-sized hummingbird species, and adults have an average body length of 3.9 in (10 cm). They are larger than the bee hummingbird that is considered the smallest hummingbird.

How fast can a cinnamon hummingbird fly?

The flight speed of the cinnamon hummingbird is unspecified.

How much does a cinnamon hummingbird weigh?

These lightweight birds have an average weight of 0.17 oz (4.8 g).

What are the male and female names of the species?

Neither sex of these birds have a specific name assigned to them.

What would you call a baby cinnamon hummingbird?

A baby hummingbird, like most bird babies, is called a chick. Baby hummingbirds can be easily distinguished from adults as they lack the bronze-green color tone and the gold and green edging at the base of the tail that adults have.

What do they eat?

The cinnamon hummingbird (Amazilia rutila) is omnivorous in nature and has a diet that comprises insects and flower nectar.

Are they dangerous?

No, these birds are not dangerous at all.

Would they make a good pet?

No, the hummingbird family is a wild species of birds and is not suited to life in captivity. If you want to get a close look at them, you can visit parks or aviaries and follow your field guide and get the best experience possible out of birdwatching.

Did you know...

Hummingbirds have natural predators in the form of owlspraying mantids, and several snake species.

These birds made their way into North America from Asia.

Hummingbirds can eat half of their body weight in insects and nectar.

The fact that hummingbirds make up the second-largest family of birds is absolutely true, as there are over 300 varieties of hummingbirds.

What is the rarest hummingbird?

The rarest hummingbird species that can be found in the world is the Leucistic hummingbird. These birds have a population count of fewer than 100 individuals, and sightings have been recorded in some states of North America.

How did hummingbirds evolve?

Hummingbirds have gone through various evolutionary aspects and have time and again proven that they can adapt to changing ecosystems in the range. For example, hummingbirds developed long bills to suck out the nectar from plants, as nectar became a vital part of their diets, along with insects.

These birds have made their way to North America and other countries by migrating from their natural habitats in search of resources.

In the case of breeding, males have developed bright plumage in an effort to attract females as they only mate with the best-looking males, i.e., males with bold colors and the longest tails.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Radjah shelduck facts and yellow warbler facts for kids.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable mallard duck coloring pages.

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Written by Georgia Stone

Bachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

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Georgia StoneBachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

Georgia is an experienced Content Manager with a degree in French and Film Studies from King's College London and Bachelors degree from Université Paris-Sorbonne. Her passion for exploring the world and experiencing different cultures was sparked during her childhood in Switzerland and her year abroad in Paris. In her spare time, Georgia enjoys using London's excellent travel connections to explore further afield.

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