Anna's Hummingbird

Scientific Name:   Calypte anna

Where is the best place to view Anna's Hummingbirds in Monterey County?


Anna's Hummingbirds are a year round resident in Monterey County.  This tiny bird is common in open woodlands (especially areas with eucalyptus trees), sage chaparral and residential gardens.


About Anna's Hummingbird


Anna's Hummingbirds are among the most common hummingbird on the Pacific Coast. Anna's Hummingbirds enjoy sipping nectar from flowers and back-yard feeders but are also extremely adept hunters.  This species is known to eat more insects and spiders than any other hummingbird and is able to catch insects in midair.  

Hummingbirds have the unique ability to fly forward, backward, up, down and side to side. In fact, male's use their flying abilities to impress females during aerial mating displays often seen between November and February.  The male flies to a height of up to 130 feet in the sky and plunges in a near vertical dive to earth in daredevil fashion.  At the bottom of the dive, he holds his tail feathers in a distinctive manner that produces an explosive chirp. As courtship progresses, the female will lead the male towards her nest site, where he will continue to court her with additional flying displays and songs.  Aside from the romantic courtship, Anna's Hummingbirds are polygamous and both sexes will often mate with more than one individual per season.


Anna's Hummingbird Fun Facts

  • The average weight of a hummingbird is .15 ounces (about the weight of a nickel).
  • A group of hummingbirds may be called a bouquet, glittering, a hover, shimmer, or a tune of hummingbirds.
  • Anna's Hummingbirds have an average body temperature of 107 degrees. When outside temperatures fall, hummingbirds enter torpor and their body temperature can fall to 48 degrees.  When temperatures warm, the hummingbird can become active again in a few minutes. 
  • Females build nests out of plant down and spider webs.  They often decorate the outside of the nest with lichens.
  • Hummingbirds are only found in the Americas.  No species of hummingbirds exist in Europe or Asia.
  • Hummingbirds have tiny legs and can neither walk nor hop, but can scoot slightly when perched.