The California bird that is most well known for having an exceptionally long tail is the male Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna). This vibrant emerald and rose colored hummingbird has one of the longest tails relative to its body size of any North American bird species.
What makes the male Anna’s Hummingbird’s tail so long?
The male Anna’s Hummingbird has a long, forked tail that can measure up to 4.7 inches in length. That’s nearly as long as the hummingbird’s entire body! The two outer tail feathers are particularly elongated, giving the tail a distinctive forked appearance when fanned out.
This extraordinary tail results from sexual selection – the evolution of traits that improve an animal’s ability to attract mates. A long tail signals health and vitality to female Anna’s Hummingbirds, so males with the longest tails have an advantage when it comes to reproduction. Over many generations, the male’s tail feathers have become dramatically elongated through this selective pressure.
How does the male Anna’s Hummingbird use its long tail?
The male Anna’s Hummingbird relies on its lengthy tail for impressive aerial courtship displays. When attempting to attract a mate, the male will perform dramatic dive displays. He ascends 30-100 feet into the air before swooping steeply back towards the ground, spreading his tail feathers and producing a loud chirping vocalization.
The long tail feathers allow the male to control and stabilize these daredevil dives, while also creating captivating flashes of iridescent color. Studies have shown that females are more likely to mate with males who have longer tail streamers and perform higher-velocity dive displays.
How common are Anna’s Hummingbirds in California?
Anna’s Hummingbirds are year-round residents across much of coastal and southern California. Their range extends from southern British Columbia to Baja California. Within California, they are one of the most frequently encountered backyard hummingbirds.
In the summer breeding season, male Anna’s Hummingbirds with their flashy tails are a familiar sight in gardens and parks from San Francisco to San Diego. In winter, they remain common in many areas of coastal California where flowering plants provide nectar. Their adaptability allows them to thrive in neighborhoods and suburban settings.
Where do Anna’s Hummingbirds nest in California?
Anna’s Hummingbirds nest in a wide variety of habitats in California, from urban yards to chaparral hillsides. The female builds a small cup-shaped nest out of plant down, spider webs, and lichens. She glues the nest to a vertical branch using sticky spider silk.
Favored nest sites include the horizontal branches of trees like eucalyptus, pine, oak, and sycamore. The female may also nest on vines, stalks of yucca or agave, or even on lampposts and building eaves. Nest heights range from 3 to 75 feet off the ground.
When is the Anna’s Hummingbird breeding season in California?
In most of California, Anna’s Hummingbirds breed between November and June. However, timing varies depending on climate and food availability. In warmer southern regions, breeding may start as early as December or January. Further north, peak breeding occurs between March and May.
The male performs his diving displays to attract females. Once mated, the female builds the nest and incubates the eggs alone. She raises two broods per year on average, with 1-3 eggs per clutch. The eggs hatch after 15-19 days, and the chicks fledge about 3 weeks after hatching.
What is the lifespan of an Anna’s Hummingbird?
In the wild, Anna’s Hummingbirds generally live 3-5 years. The oldest known wild Anna’s Hummingbird was a female documented to be at least 12 years old after being banded in California and recaptured over a decade later. With supplemental feeding, captive birds may exceed 12 years of age.
What do Anna’s Hummingbirds eat?
Anna’s Hummingbirds have a diverse diet centered around nectar and small insects. Their long bills and tongues are adapted for accessing nectar from flowers such as currants, fuchsias, sages, and many native plants. They also capture small insects like gnats, aphids, and spiders to meet their nutritional needs.
At backyard feeders, Anna’s Hummingbirds readily drink from specialized hummingbird feeders filled with sucrose solution. They feed every 10-15 minutes and consume up to twice their body weight in nectar each day to power their extreme metabolisms.
How have Anna’s Hummingbirds adapted to urban environments?
Anna’s Hummingbirds have proven adept at exploiting the food resources provided by urban and suburban gardens. They are attracted to nectar sources from exotic flowering plants as well as sugar water from hummingbird feeders. Many birds now rely on these man-made food supplies to fuel their year-round residency.
Anna’s Hummingbirds also nest on artificial structures and will tolerate disturbance from human activity. Their flexibility in utilizing new food sources and nest sites has enabled them to thrive in neighborhoods and cities throughout their California range.
How can I attract Anna’s Hummingbirds to my yard?
Here are some tips to entice Anna’s Hummingbirds to visit your yard in California:
- Set up nectar feeders – Use a specialized hummingbird feeder filled with a 4:1 ratio of water to white sugar. Place in a visible location and refresh nectar every 2-3 days.
- Plant nectar-rich flowers – Favorites include fuchsias, coral honeysuckle, trumpet vine, penstemon, sage, and native plants like ocotillo.
- Provide small perches – Anna’s Hummingbirds often perch briefly between feeder visits. Place small branches or posts near feeders.
- Add a water feature – A mister, fountain, or bird bath provides drinking and bathing water for the birds.
- Avoid pesticides – Chemicals can poison hummingbirds and kill insect prey. Use organic gardening methods.
With a little encouragement, these energetic hummingbirds will become loyal visitors to any California garden or patio.
What is unique about the Anna’s Hummingbird’s appearance?
Several distinctive physical features of the Anna’s Hummingbird make it stand out:
- Long tail – As discussed above, the male has tail streamers up to 4.7 inches long giving a forked tail shape.
- Rose-pink crown and throat – Adult males have iridescent magenta crowns and throats used to attract females.
- Emerald green back – Males have bright emerald green backs and tails. Females have grayish-green plumage.
- White eye stripe – Both males and females have a prominent white stripe behind the eye.
- Curved bill – Their specialized beaks are perfectly adapted for accessing nectar.
Even the female Anna’s Hummingbird is distinguished by her broad white tip on the outer tail feathers and her rosy-flushed throat and chest during the breeding season.
Why are the males so colorful?
The vibrant pink and emerald plumage of male Anna’s Hummingbirds serves an important purpose – to catch the eye of female hummingbirds. The more brilliant and conspicuous the colors, the better a male can display his fitness as a potential mate.
The males obtain their bright coloring through specialized feather pigments and structural properties. Iridescent rose pigments in the crown and throat feathers create a flashing glow during dive displays. The green back feathers have precisely stacked melanin granules that reflect light.
This ornamental plumage comes at a cost, however. The energy spent producing flashy feathers could otherwise be used for survival. But because the coloration gives males a strong reproductive advantage, natural selection has shaped these ostentatious displays.
How fast can Anna’s Hummingbirds fly?
Anna’s Hummingbirds are capable of incredible aerial feats thanks to their streamlined bodies and highly specialized flight muscles that comprise around 25% of their total body weight.
During courtship displays, the males can reach speeds of over 50 mph in a dive. Their wings beat up to 70 times per second, creating the signature humming sound. This allows them to stop instantly, hover in place, and even fly backwards – maneuvers few other birds can match.
Females are also agile flyers. They aggressively defend flowers and feeders against intruders, outmaneuvering larger hummingbirds with their speed and dexterity. Anna’s Hummingbirds routinely reach cruising speeds of 30 mph as they zip from flower to flower.
Do Anna’s Hummingbirds migrate?
Unlike many other hummingbird species that migrate long distances, Anna’s Hummingbirds are year-round residents throughout much of their range in western North America. They are well adapted to survive the variable weather and food availability in their territory.
However, some northern populations may migrate short distances. Birds breeding in British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon may move south to California for the winter. There is also likely altitudinal migration, with birds moving to lower elevations in winter.
Banding studies show that individual Anna’s Hummingbirds often return to the same feeders and gardens year after year. Developing site familiarity helps them maximize food resources through the seasonal changes.
What sound does an Anna’s Hummingbird make?
The most notable Anna’s Hummingbird vocalization is the loud, sharp chips given by displaying males during their dive displays. As air rushes through their tail feathers during the steep dive, the whistling or popping sounds add to the elaborate performance.
Both males and females communicate with a series of brief squeaks and chips. Longer rattling or scolding calls are used when defending a food source from other hummingbirds. Male and female songs consist of varied squeaks and buzzes used to establish territories and attract mates.
Do Anna’s Hummingbirds sleep?
Like all birds, Anna’s Hummingbirds require sleep for survival. However, they face a unique challenge due to their high metabolism. To keep their energy up, hummingbirds need to eat frequently during the day, yet this also means they cannot sleep for long periods.
So how do hummingbirds sleep? They have adapted the ability to power nap. During the day, an Anna’s Hummingbird will take repeated mini-naps lasting just a few seconds each. They go into a sort of suspended animation where their body temperature drops and their heartbeat slows dramatically.
At night, Anna’s Hummingbirds sleep for longer bouts while clinging vertically to a branch or other perch in a sheltered spot. Their unique leg and toe anatomy allows them to firmly grip when sleeping in this position.
Do Anna’s Hummingbirds live in the desert?
Anna’s Hummingbirds are rare and local in desert regions, as they require a reliable source of flowers for nectar. However, some birds may take advantage of flowering desert plants like ocotillo, palo verde, and agave when they bloom.
The Salton Sea area in southern California’s Sonoran Desert is one location where Anna’s Hummingbirds can be found year-round. Agricultural fields and lush oases in the desert provide the food and water resources these hummingbirds need to survive the arid conditions.
Elsewhere in the desert, Anna’s Hummingbirds are generally only short-term spring and summer residents. Lack of food forces most to retreat to more hospitable habitats in winter. Urban plantings and feeders have enabled small wintering populations in some desert towns.
Do Anna’s Hummingbirds live in the mountains?
The Anna’s Hummingbird is a common resident of mountain forests and meadows within their range, particularly during the breeding season. They flourish in areas with flowering plants and nest sites like ponderosa pine, oak, and pinyon-juniper woodlands.
In the mountains of southern California, Anna’s Hummingbirds breed in the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges at elevations up to 10,000 feet. Further north along the Pacific Coast, they occupy the Sierra Nevada and Cascade ranges.
Cold winters with freezing temperatures and deep snow may force mountain populations to lower elevations. However, some birds can tough out alpine conditions and return quickly to high mountain flower meadows each spring.
Do Anna’s Hummingbirds live in the chaparral?
Chaparral habitat dominated by drought-adapted shrubs like manzanita, ceanothus, and chamise is ideal environment for Anna’s Hummingbirds. The flowers of these shrubs provide essential spring and summer nectar for fueling the breeding season.
Chaparral covers extensive areas of coastal and inland foothills in California, making it one of the most important ecosystems for breeding Anna’s Hummingbirds. They favor openings and edges where flowering plants are abundant. The shrubs also offer nest sites and perches for the birds.
In late summer and fall when chaparral flowers disappear, the hummingbirds leave for areas with more reliable food and water. But they will quickly return each spring to exploit the renewed blooming of the shrubs.
Conclusion
With its vibrant colors, aerial agility, and pugnacious nature, the Anna’s Hummingbird is one of California’s most charismatic birds. It thrives from urban backyards to high mountains thanks to behavioral flexibility paired with unique evolutionary adaptations for feeding and flight. Providing habitat needs like nectar flowers and small perches are all it takes to entice these energetic hummingbirds to your outdoor space.