Bird Guide

Canivet's Emerald vs Violet-headed Hummingbird

Canivet's Emerald (Cynanthus canivetii)

Canivet's Emerald

Cynanthus canivetii

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Male Canivet's emeralds are 7.8 to 9.3 cm (3.1 to 3.7 in) long and weigh 2.1 to 2.8 g (0.074 to 0.099 oz). Females are 7.5 to 8.6 cm (3.0 to 3.4 in) long and weigh about 2.3 g (0.081 oz). Males of the nominate subspecies have a red bill with a black tip. Their crown is bright golden to golden green and the rest of the upperparts a less brilliant golden green. Their underparts are brilliant golden green with white tibal tufts. The tail is long and forked, blue-black or black with a blue gloss, and the central two or three pairs of feathers have dark brownish gray tips. Voice: What is thought to be the Canivet's emerald song is "an endlessly repeated, characterless wiry tseee tseeree". Its call has been described as "a dry, scratchy chut or chit, sometimes run together into a soft, staccato chatter"

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Nigel Voaden, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by
Violet-headed Hummingbird (Klais guimeti)

Violet-headed Hummingbird

Klais guimeti

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Violet-headed hummingbirds are on average 8.1 cm (3.2 in) in length with a short, straight bill that averages 13 mm (0.51 in) in length. The head and throat of the male are intense violet or blue (depending on the angle viewed) with white spots behind each eye that stands out against the dark head. The back is metallic bluish-green (or bronze-green depending on the angle) and breast is green fading to a grey belly. The tail is green with tiny white-grey tail spots. The wings are black. The female is duller with a blue cap, green back and grey throat, breast and belly.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Don Henise · CC BY 2.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Canivet's Emerald and Violet-headed Hummingbird.