~Costa's Hummingbird~

~Calypte costae~

A great view from his little perch on one of my dormant Ocotillo branches. This little bird is a regular visitor to my backyard flowers. In fact I believe it has staked out my yard as his personal restaurant and pickup bar. Feeding, chasing off rivals and mating are his main objectives in life, nice life!

The Costa's Hummingbird is very small, a mature adult growing to only 3 inches in length. On parts of their bodies there are iridescent green and purple patches of feathers. When engaged in the courting of a mate the male will angle his fancy aerobatics so that the sun will reflect off his luminous feathers, thus impressing the female.

Hope you enjoyed looking, TucsonJim ;o)


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