Hummingbird Species in Photos

A hummingbird can look plain one moment and flash color the next. These close photographs make it easier to see what changes from species to species. Start with the throat patches and bills of familiar North American birds, then follow the variety south through Cuba, the Central American cloud forests, the Andes, and Brazil. Look for details a quick glimpse can miss, from the narrow violet band on a black-chinned hummingbird to the paddle-shaped feathers on a marvelous spatuletail.