Calliope Hummingbird

Overview
Calliope Hummingbird: Very small hummingbird, metallic green upperparts and flanks, white underparts. Throat feathers are long, purple-red, appearing as streaks on a white background, whiskers when fluffed out, or dark, inverted V when folded. Direct and hovering flight with very rapid wing beats.

Range and Habitat
Calliope Hummingbird: Breeds from central British Columbia and southwestern Alberta, through Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and California to northern Baja California, and east to Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah. Winters from northern to central Mexico. Prefers meadows, canyons and streams in open montane forests. In winter and migration prefers chaparral, lowland brushy areas, and deserts.

The Calliope Hummingbird is native to the United States, Mexico and Canada. This bird has a range of more than 1 million square kilometers. It is estimated that the global population of the Calliope Hummingbird is around 1 million individual birds. Previously, the Calliope Hummingbird had a rating of Lower Risk. That rating has now been downgraded to a Least Concern rating. There are no immediate threats that would endanger the population of this bird.

INTERESTING FACTS
It prefers high mountains, and has been seen as high as 11,000 feet. The Calliope Hummingbird is the smallest breeding bird in North America and the smallest long-distance avian migrant in the world. This bird was named after the Greek muse Calliope. The latin name Stellula means "little star," given for the male's streaked purple-redgorget over a white background. A group of hummingbirds has many collective nouns, including a “bouquet", "glittering", "hover", "shimmer", and "tune” of hummingbirds.