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Photo of the Ruby-throated hummingbird
North AmericaLeast concern

Ruby-throated hummingbird

Archilochus colubris

A tiny, jewel-coloured bird that hovers in front of flowers to drink their nectar.

Weight
About 3 g
Size
9 cm long
Lifespan
3–5 years
Top speed
About 50 km/h flying
Diet
Nectar and tiny insects

How heavy is that?

So light that a 40 kg kid weighs as much as 13,333 of them

Where it lives

Three things to know

  1. Its wings beat about 50 times a second, which makes the humming sound.
  2. It can fly backwards.
  3. Every autumn some fly non-stop across the Gulf of Mexico, about 800 km.
Try the body explorerSee its neighbours

Compare with…

Weight
Ruby-throated hummingbird3 g
A 10-year-old kid40 kg
The kid weighs about 13,333× as much as the hummingbird
Size
Ruby-throated hummingbird9 cm
A 10-year-old kid1.4 m
The kid is about 16× as big as the hummingbird
Top speed
Ruby-throated hummingbird50 km/h
A 10-year-old kid20 km/h
The hummingbird is about 2.5× as fast as the kid
Lifespan
Ruby-throated hummingbird5 yrs
A 10-year-old kid80 yrs
The kid can live about 16× as long as the hummingbird

Food chain

  1. Flower nectarProducer
  2. Ruby-throated hummingbirdThis animal