Bird guide · Selasphorus platycercus
Broad-tailed Hummingbird
What the broad-tailed hummingbird eats, where it lives, when it comes to feeders and how to recognise it – with sightings from every US state.
- Season
- Migrant
- Size
- 3.7 in (9.5 cm)
- Eats
- nectar
- Feeds
- nectar feeder
- Most common
- Colorado, New Mexico, Utah
Food
What do broad-tailed hummingbirds eat?
At feeders, broad-tailed hummingbirds take nectar.
At feeders it may hover or perch.
Feeder that suits it
A hummingbird nectar feeder with one part sugar to four parts water.
Range
Where do broad-tailed hummingbirds live?
Mountain West in summer; moves north in early March and south in early August. By share of all bird sightings, broad-tailed hummingbirds are most common in Colorado (1.1%).
States where broad-tailed hummingbirds are most common
- Colorado1.1%
- New Mexico0.8%
- Utah0.5%
- Wyoming0.5%
- Arizona0.4%
- Nevada0.1%
- Idaho0.08%
- Texas0.02%
- Montana0.02%
- South Dakota0.02%
Share of all bird sightings in each state that are broad-tailed hummingbirds, 2019–2024.
Season
When can you see the broad-tailed hummingbird?
Migrant. Across the US, sightings start in April, peak in July and fade out in October.
Share of all bird sightings in the US that are broad-tailed hummingbirds, by month.
Identification
How to identify the broad-tailed hummingbird
Male: Rose throat, green back and sides; wings make a metallic trill.
Female: Green above with buff sides; larger tail than female Rufous.
Size: 3.7 in (9.5 cm)
On camera
Getting the broad-tailed hummingbird on a feeder camera
You need a hummingbird feeder camera – hummingbirds never visit seed feeders. See feeder cameras compared for the nectar models.
Questions
Broad-tailed Hummingbird: questions
What do broad-tailed hummingbirds eat?
At feeders, nectar.
Do broad-tailed hummingbirds migrate?
Migrant. Across the US, sightings start in April, peak in July and fade out in October.
Where do broad-tailed hummingbirds live?
By share of all bird sightings, they are most common in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Arizona. They are rare or absent in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware.
What does a female broad-tailed hummingbird look like?
Green above with buff sides; larger tail than female Rufous.