West Coast Cuties

Full feeders and fanciful flowers keep Anna’s hummingbirds in backyards year-round.

- Lisa Ballard

A stocky, medium-sized hummingbird, the Anna’s has a straight, short bill and a broad tail that extends past the wings. With bold, metallic greens above a gray belly, Anna’s is the only North American hummingbird sporting a full reddish crown.

Males proudly display a brilliant magenta throat, called a gorget, and crown. If it appears to be more violent than rose in color, the bird could be a hybrid that is the result of a mating between Anna’s and Costa’s hummingbirds.

Females have specks of pink-red on their throats, often forming a small gorget that is unusual for female hummingbirds. Their backs are duller, iridescent green, with drab gray underparts.