Fun Emerald-chinned Hummingbird Facts For Kids
Gallery
Have you ever seen a hummingbird hovering and fluttering? Did you ever know that there are 300 species of hummingbirds worldwide, and over 50 different species are in the US and Mexico?
It is said that this gorgeous-looking and colorful bird is one of the smallest among all birds. The emerald-chinned hummingbird is a small, long-beaked bird with an emerald green chin among these different species. So, let's dive into their fascinating world to know more about this bird.
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei), also referred to as Abeille's hummingbird, is a hummingbird from the Trochilidae family and genus Abeillia, which is found widely throughout Central America and southern Mexico.
They feed on flower nectar and are attracted to long tubular flowers, especially red, yellow, orange, and pink flowers. Two subspecies are known-Abeillia abeillei abeillei (Belize to El Salvador and northern Honduras and Southeastern Mexico south through Guatemala and ) and Abeillia abeillei aurea (northern Nicaragua and southern Honduras).
Read on to learn more facts about these fast-moving busy birds below. Also, visit our other similar bird species like the bee-eater and the hummingbird to get helpful information about their identification and description.
Emerald-Chinned Hummingbird Interesting Facts
What type of animal is an emerald-chinned hummingbird?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is the only hummingbird species in the genus Abeillia and a member of the Trochilidae family.
What class of animal does an emerald-chinned hummingbird belong to?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is a tiny, colorful, thin-beaked bird of the Aves class.
How many emerald-chinned hummingbirds are there in the world?
The exact population size of these birds is unknown, but the emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is a wide-ranging species in its local region.
Where does an emerald-chinned hummingbird live?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is widespread throughout Central America in Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, and southern Mexico.
What is an emerald-chinned hummingbird's habitat?
Emerald-chinned hummingbirds (Abeillia abeillei) thrive in a wide variety of habitats like a moist montane evergreen forest, pine forest in highlands, heavily degraded former forest, upper foothills, gardens, and backyards.
Who do emerald-chinned hummingbirds live with?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is solitary. There do not form pairs except for breeding. Males form feeding territories, where they use intimidating displays and aerial flights to defend their territories.
How long does an emerald-chinned hummingbird live?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird has an average lifespan of three to five years compared to a Black-chinned hummingbird, which has an average lifespan of up to 10 years.
How do they reproduce?
The breeding season for emerald-chinned hummingbirds usually occurs between February and March. Abeillia abeillei is a polygynous bird, that is a male and will mate with several females. The male bird will leave the female immediately after mating and has no role in building the nest, caring for eggs, or raising the chicks.
During breeding, males perform communal courtship displays that involve flaunting their attractive plumage, singing, and flying in a u-shaped pattern to attract the females in their territories.
The female builds a deep, cup-shaped nest with soft plant fibers, animal hair, and feather on a low, thin horizontal branch situated about 3.3-10 ft (1-3 m) high on top of a tree; Lower than a black-chinned hummingbird, which prefers to nest 6-12 ft (1.8-3.7 m) above the ground.
The nest structure is strengthened with sticky material and spider webbing so that nest can stretch as the chicks grow.
The female bird will lay 2 white eggs and incubate alone for one or two weeks. The mother feeds the chicks with mostly partially-digested insects by pushing the food down the chicks' throat with her long bill. When the juveniles are about seven to ten days old, they leave the nest.
What is their conservation status?
The IUCN Red List conservation status for emerald-chinned hummingbirds is of Least Concern. However, the population is believed to be declining owing to habitat loss through logging.
Emerald-Chinned Hummingbird Fun Facts
What do emerald-chinned hummingbirds look like?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird has an attractive appearance. They are tiny hummingbirds with a straight bill and a short, broad tail.
The upper parts of the male are green, with a prominent white postocular spot behind each eye. The chin and upper throat are emerald green, and the lower throat is blackish.
The top of the head and wings are metallic green for a female bird and have a prominent white postocular spot; the underparts are mostly white, with green mottling on the flanks. Other physical details are their bill is short and black.
They have blue tail feathers at the center, and the rest of the tail is black with grey borders. Females are similar to males in terms of appearance, except their underparts are pale gray, and also the juvenile's appearance initially resembles females.
How cute are they?
Emerald-chinned hummingbird, Abeillia abeillei, is a small, brightly colored, and mesmerizing bird that looks cute, attracting every onlooker fluttering around.
How do they communicate?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) has a high, thin, slightly squeaking and chipping song, like 'tsin-tsin', or 'tsi-tsi' . In addition, when foraging, an emerald-chinned hummingbird has a liquid, rattling trill call 'puip puip'.
How big is an emerald-chinned hummingbird?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is a tiny bird measuring about 2.8-3 in (7-7.6 cm) in length. It is relatively smaller than a rufous hummingbird, which has a length of about 3.1 in (8 cm) and bigger than a bee hummingbird of length 2 in (5 cm).
How fast can an emerald-chinned hummingbird fly?
The exact flying speed of the emerald-chinned hummingbird is not known in detail. But generally, hummingbirds can fly at an average speed of 25 to 30 mph (40 to 48 kph) and can dive at a speed of up to 60 mph (96.5 kph).
How much does an emerald-chinned hummingbird weigh?
The emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) has a weight of 0.10 oz (2.8 g). It is a little lighter than a black-chinned hummingbird, whose weight is0.1-0.2 oz (2.3-4.9 g). Just like the other hummingbirds, females are larger than males.
What are the male and female names of the species?
A male emerald-chinned hummingbird is called a cock, and the female emerald-chinned hummingbird is called a hen.
What would you call a baby emerald-chinned hummingbird?
A baby emerald-chinned hummingbird is called a chick.
What do they eat?
Emerald-chinned hummingbird (Abeillia abeillei) is primarily nectarivorous and feeds on nectar taken from flowers of plants of the families Verbenaceae, Rubiaceae, and Oenotheraceae. They use their long, straw-like tongues to pump the nectar up to 13 times per second while hovering with their tail upwards.
Emerald-chinned hummingbird also consumes some small spiders and insects like caterpillars, ants, aphids, common wasps, beetles, etc, which are essential protein sources, especially during the breeding season for proper development of their young. The insects can be caught during flight or taken from spider webs or snatched off leaves.
Did you know a nesting female hummingbird can catch up to 2,000 insects a day?
Are they poisonous?
No, the emerald-chinned hummingbird is not poisonous.
Would they make a good pet?
No, it's not possible to keep a hummingbird as a pet. This species will not be able to survive in enclosed areas as they are incredible fliers, and it is illegal to own this bird.
Did you know...
The name hummingbird comes from the humming noise made by their fast-moving wings.
This bird's nest is so tiny that it is about the size of a walnut shell or a bottle cap and the eggs are the size of jellybean or a coffee bean!
There is no information in particular about the migration of emerald-chinned hummingbirds, but usually, most hummingbirds are migratory, and their migration habits differ for each species. They migrate alone, not in flocks, searching for food, and back to their breeding range.
A flock of hummingbirds is referred to as a bouquet, a glittering, a hover, a charm, or a tune.
A hummingbird's heart beats up to 1,200 times per minute, placing them second among the fastest heart beating of all animals.
Is an emerald-chinned hummingbird endangered?
As per studies, the emerald-chinned hummingbird tends to be a high concern or endangered species based on its declining population, especially in Mexico. The primary threats to this species are climate change, logging of mature forests, and habitat conversion for agriculture and livestock production.
The emerald-chinned hummingbird in Mexico has a special protection status under Mexican law because it has a restricted range associated with cloud forests-a critically endangered habitat in the country.
What is the difference between an emerald-chinned hummingbird and a hummingbird?
Around 300 species of hummingbirds worldwide and some of the species have different appearances or descriptions that separate their identification from other species.
The emerald-chinned hummingbird belongs to the hummingbird species.
The emerald-chinned hummingbird got its name because its chin and upper throat are emerald green in color.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other birds from our eastern wood pewee facts and hyacinth macaw facts pages.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable emerald-chinned hummingbird coloring pages.
central america
Get directions
We Want Your Photos!
More for You
See All
Bachelor of Science specializing in Human Anatomy
Joan AgieBachelor of Science specializing in Human Anatomy
With 3+ years of research and content writing experience across several niches, especially on education, technology, and business topics. Joan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Human Anatomy from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria, and has worked as a researcher and writer for organizations across Nigeria, the US, the UK, and Germany. Joan enjoys meditation, watching movies, and learning new languages in her free time.
Disclaimer
1) Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising. We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the Buy Now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published but we cannot guarantee that on the time of reading. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
2) At Kidadl, we strive to recommend the very best activities and events. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability. Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
3) Because we are an educational resource, we have quotes and facts about a range of historical and modern figures. We do not endorse the actions of or rhetoric of all the people included in these collections, but we think they are important for growing minds to learn about under the guidance of parents or guardians.