12.4. Calypte anna: Anna’s Hummingbird http://www.ck12.org
12.4 Calypte anna: Anna’s Hummingbird
Common Name
- Anna’s Hummingbird
This bird was named after Anna Masséna, Duchess of Rivoli.
Description
Calypte annais a very common hummingbird on the West Coast of North America. They are stocky, medium-sized
hummingbirds. Anna’s hummingbird is about 10 cm (4 in.) in length, with a wingspan of 12 cm (5 in.), and weighs
about 3 - 6 grams.C. annahas a bronzy green dorsal area, a medium-length bill, and a broad tail. The males can be
identified by their bright rose throats and dark tails. Females have a dull mix of gray and white, or gray and brown,
and a white-tipped tail.
Males are well known for their mating rituals of flying up to a height of 130 feet to plummet to the ground, pulling
up at the last second, making beautiful noises with their tail feathers. Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly
backwards.
The complete taxonomic classification is:
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Trochiliformes
- Family: Trochilidae
- Genus:Calypte
- Species:C. anna