Green-and-white Hummingbird vs Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Elliotomyia viridicauda compared with Archilochus colubris
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Green-and-white Hummingbird | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Elliotomyia viridicauda | Archilochus colubris |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Trochilidae | Trochilidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | 8.5 cm (3.3 in) |
| Wingspan | — | 11.0 cm (4.3 in) |
| Weight | 5.8500000000000005 g (0.21 oz) | 3.1 g (0.11 oz) |
| Diet | Nectarivore specialising in tubular blossoms; supplements the floral nectar diet with tiny insects and spiders … | Nectar from tubular flowers, supplemented with small insects and spiders for protein. Feeds at over … |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Deciduous and mixed forests, woodland edges, gardens, and parks with flowering plants. Migrates across the Gulf of Mexico.
Song & Call Comparison
Green-and-white Hummingbird
Rough, buzzy chatter with coarse texture; harsh series of notes delivered emphatically near territory boundary.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Soft, high-pitched chattering and twittering 'chee-dit'. Also produces a thin 'tik' call in flight. Wing beats create an audible high-pitched humming buzz during hovering.
Geographic Range & Migration
Green-and-white Hummingbird
Found in humid Andean forests of Peru at 1,500-3,000 m. A Peruvian near-endemic of cloud forest.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Eastern North America from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast. Winters in Central America and southern Mexico.
Conservation Status
Green-and-white Hummingbird
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
How to Tell Them Apart
Green-and-white Hummingbird
Pheasant Coucal (alt): dark black above with bronze sheen; rufous wings; barred tail; red eye; ground-dwelling coucal; long tail
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Metallic green upperparts and greyish-white underparts. Males have a brilliant iridescent ruby-red gorget that appears black in poor light. Females lack the gorget.
Long, straight, thin black bill adapted for probing flowers
About These Birds
Green-and-white Hummingbird
A small hummingbird (9-10 cm) found in humid Andean forests of Peru at 1,500-3,000 m. Green plumage with white breast and green-tipped tail. Nectarivore of cloud forest and forest edges. A Peruvian near-endemic.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
The ruby-throated hummingbird is the only breeding hummingbird in eastern North America. These tiny birds beat their wings about 53 times per second and can fly backwards, sideways, and even briefly upside down. They make an extraordinary non-stop 800 km crossing of the Gulf of Mexico during migration.