White-bearded Hermit vs Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Phaethornis hispidus compared with Archilochus colubris
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | White-bearded Hermit | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Phaethornis hispidus | Archilochus colubris |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Trochilidae | Trochilidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | 8.5 cm (3.3 in) |
| Wingspan | 10.8 cm (4.3 in) | 11.0 cm (4.3 in) |
| Weight | 4.975 g (0.18 oz) | 3.1 g (0.11 oz) |
| Diet | Nectarivore visiting Heliconia, Costus, and banana flowers along forest understory routes. Takes small insects opportunistically. | 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
White-bearded Hermit
Sharp, staccato chips in rapid series; clean, emphatic notes delivered rhythmically without inflection or melodic variation.
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
White-bearded Hermit
Widespread in western Amazonia from Colombia and Venezuela south through Ecuador and Peru to Bolivia. Found at 100–1,000 m.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Eastern North America from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast. Winters in Central America and southern Mexico.
Conservation Status
White-bearded Hermit
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
How to Tell Them Apart
White-bearded Hermit
Mexican Hermit: olive-green above; pale whitish below; dark facial mask; white supercilium; pale buff-white supercilium; curved bill
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
White-bearded Hermit
A medium-sized hermit hummingbird (13-15 cm) found in lowland forests from Venezuela through Amazonia to Bolivia. Green plumage with a distinctive white beard-like throat stripe and long, white-tipped tail. Nectarivore of forest undergrowth, visiting Heliconia flowers.
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.