HummingbirdsWhite-eared HummingbirdBasilinna leucotis
- ORDER: Caprimulgiformes
- FAMILY: Trochilidae
Basic Description
The White-eared Hummingbird stands out from other hummingbirds in its area with its gleaming white “ear stripe” set off against an all-dark head. When sunlight hits just right, adult males are suddenly transformed, revealing a glowing violet face and a glittering green throat. Females and immature males share the dark-and-white head pattern but lack adult males’ iridescence. This medium-sized hummingbird inhabits mountain forests, foraging low in clearings in search of nectar. Its main range stretches from Nicaragua to northern Mexico, and it visits southeastern Arizona in small numbers.
More ID InfoOther Names
- Colibrí Orejiblanco (Spanish)
- Colibri à oreilles blanches (French)
- Cool Facts
- Here’s a “Cold Fact” about White-eared Hummingbird: Mexican ornithologists have documented this tiny bird, which weighs about the same as three paper clips, successfully breeding in temperatures as low as 2°C. The nest with two chicks was 2,900 meters (9,500 feet) high in the mountains of Oaxaca in February.
- White-eared Hummingbirds range from Nicaragua to northern Mexico, and they are also uncommon visitors (and occasional breeders) in the southwestern United States. They are nearly annual visitors to southeastern Arizona and turn up in Texas in many years. On rare occasions, individuals show up as far away as Alabama, Michigan, and Mississippi.