Bee Hummingbird

The Bee Hummingbird is the smallest bird species on Earth, native only to Cuba and the nearby Isla de la Juventud. Adults weigh about as much as a large paperclip and are barely longer than many bumblebees, which along with their humming flight gives the species its name.

Breeding males display a fiery, iridescent rose-pink to red gorget covering the head and throat, an iridescent blue-green back, and grayish-white underparts. Non-breeding males and females lack the pink head coloring, showing green upperparts and pale gray underparts with white-tipped outer tail feathers.

Key field marks

• Extremely tiny size, smaller than many insects, with a rapid, buzzy flight
• Breeding male: brilliant iridescent rose-red to pink head and throat plumage
• Female/non-breeding male: green above, pale gray below, white tail spots

Similar species

• No other bird in Cuba approaches its minute size, making it essentially unmistakable once size is confirmed
• Female and non-breeding males can resemble other small Cuban hummingbirds like the Cuban Emerald, but the Bee Hummingbird is noticeably smaller and shorter-tailed

Habitat

Inhabits forest edge, secondary woodland, swamp margins, and gardens with abundant flowering plants.

Range

Endemic to Cuba and the adjacent Isla de la Juventud; found nowhere else in the world.

Migration

Generally sedentary, though some local seasonal movement may occur in response to flower availability.

Behavior

Extremely active and highly territorial around flowering plants, males will aggressively chase off rivals despite their tiny size.

Voice

High, thin, squeaky chipping notes; males give a buzzy, warbling song during courtship display flights.

Feeding

Feeds on nectar from a wide variety of flowers, visiting hundreds of blooms daily, and supplements its diet with small insects and spiders for protein, often gleaned from spider webs or caught in flight.

Nesting and breeding

Builds a tiny cup nest, often no bigger than a coin, from plant fibers and spider silk; the female incubates two pea-sized eggs and raises the chicks alone.