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The Allen’s Hummingbird is a tiny bird, weighing just over a penny! These green and coppery orange birds are smaller than the Anna’s Hummingbird, the most common species of hummingbird found in California. Allen’s Hummingbirds are found all along the California coast up into southern Oregon and, like many other hummingbirds, they feed on flower nectar and insects. Breeding males have bright orange iridescent throats – called a “gorget” – made up of structural feathers that reflect and refract light in just the right way. During their courtship displays, these hummers fly way up high and then repeatedly swoop down, following a J-shaped path. Allen’s Hummingbirds are often misidentified as their close relative, the Rufous Hummingbird, as they look and sound nearly identical. Although Merlin Bird ID is an amazing tool for identifying birds, it often mistakes these two species, so it is important to not solely rely on Merlin to distinguish between these two hummingbirds. If you live in coastal California, such as in Los Angeles County or the SF Bay Area, please be especially cautious when reporting the rarer Rufous Hummingbirds, and make sure you are confident in your identification before submitting your checklists. This helps ensure that the data we are collecting is accurate. If you are unsure about how to report a bird, feel free to reach out to us at projectphoenix.socal@gmail.com or connect with us on Slack. We are more than happy to help you identify birds! And remember, you can also report broader taxonomic categories on eBird (e.g. “hummingbird species) if you are uncertain about identifying birds to species.
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