Rivoli's Hummingbird Identification Guide

Key Field Marks

• Size & shape: One of the largest hummingbirds regularly seen in the United States, roughly 11–12 cm long with a noticeably long, slightly decurved bill and a bulky, broad-chested build compared to most other hummingbirds sharing its range.
• Plumage (male): Appears blackish at a distance, but in good light shows a glittering emerald-green throat (gorget), a glittering violet-purple crown, and a small black patch on the chest separating the two colors.
• Plumage (female): Dull grayish-green above and pale gray below, with a small white spot behind the eye; lacks any iridescent throat color but is identifiable by sheer size and bill length among the hummingbirds it associates with.
• Behavior: Often perches conspicuously in the open on bare branches between forays to feeders or flowering plants, and is notably aggressive, dominating smaller hummingbird species at feeders.

Separating It From Similar Species

• Blue-throated Mountain-gem: Even larger, with bold white stripes above and below the eye and a blue (not green) throat in males — both species often occur together in the same canyons.
• Broad-billed and Black-chinned Hummingbirds: Both are noticeably smaller and slimmer-billed; size and bulk alone usually separate Rivoli's from these species.
• Talamanca Hummingbird: The southern counterpart species (from Costa Rica/Panama highlands south) split from Rivoli's Hummingbird in 2017; the two are essentially identical in the field and are distinguished mainly by range, as their ranges do not overlap.

Habitat, Range & Season

Rivoli's Hummingbird breeds in humid pine-oak and montane canyon forests of the "sky island" mountains of southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico, south through the highlands of Mexico and Central America. In the U.S. it is present mainly from spring through fall, favoring shaded canyons with sycamores, streams, and flowering understory, and readily visits hummingbird feeders at canyon lodges and campgrounds.

Voice

Gives a sharp, high "chip" or "tsip" call, often repeated. Because of its larger size, its wingbeats produce a lower-pitched, more audible hum than the high whine of smaller hummingbirds.