Buff-bellied Hummingbird
Buff-bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia yucatanensis)
Name Origin:
The genus name Amazilia originates from “Amazili,” a character in an 18th-century French novel by de Marmontel, which was later used as a poetic name for a hummingbird. The species name yucatanensis refers to the Yucatán Peninsula, where this species is particularly abundant.
Quick Facts
🪶 Length: 10–11 cm (3.9–4.3 in)
⚖️ Weight: 4–5 g (0.14–0.18 oz)
🌎 Range: Southern United States and eastern Mexico south to northern Guatemala and Belize
🧭 Elevation: Sea level to 1,600 m (5,250 ft)
🌸 Diet: Nectar and small insects
🏡 Habitat: Lowland scrub, forest edge, plantations, mangroves, and gardens
🧬 Clade: Trochilini "Emeralds" (lowland hummingbirds)
📊 Status: Least Concern (IUCN)
Subspecies & Distribution
1. Amazilia yucatanensis yucatanensis (Yucatán)
Distribution: Found in southeastern Mexico (Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán), northern Belize, and northwestern Guatemala. Occasionally reported north into the Gulf Coast of Texas during the nonbreeding season.
2. Amazilia yucatanensis chalconota (Northern)
Distribution: Breeds in southeastern Texas (USA) south through northeastern Mexico, from Tamaulipas and Nuevo León south to San Luis Potosí and northern Veracruz.
3. Amazilia yucatanensis cerviniventris
Distribution: Occurs along the eastern slope of Mexico in Veracruz, Puebla, and northwestern Chiapas.
Species Overview
The Buff-bellied Hummingbird is a striking lowland species with glowing green plumage, a reddish tail, and warm buffy underparts. It is notable as one of the few hummingbirds regularly breeding in the United States, where it is locally common in southern Texas. Southward, it is widespread across the Gulf slope of Mexico and northern Central America.
Male Description:
The male has brilliant emerald-green upperparts, buff to cinnamon underparts, and a rufous tail with coppery highlights. The bill is bright red with a black tip, and the throat glows metallic green in strong light. Males often perch openly on low branches, flicking their tails and giving sharp tzip calls while defending feeding areas.
Female Description:
The female is similar but paler on the underparts, with slightly duller tail coloration and less vivid iridescence on the throat. Her bill is shorter and less brightly colored than the male’s.
Habitat & Behavior:
The Buff-bellied Hummingbird inhabits open woodlands, scrub, mangroves, and forest edges, often near water. It visits a wide variety of flowering plants, including Hamelia, Inga, and Erythrina, and frequently feeds at garden flowers and feeders. It is territorial and vocal, producing a sharp chik or dry tzip while chasing intruders. Northern populations migrate short distances, wintering along the Gulf Coast and occasionally reaching Louisiana and Florida.
Conservation Note:
The Buff-bellied Hummingbird is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN and remains stable and locally common throughout its range. It adapts well to human-altered habitats, including gardens and plantations. Local habitat loss from urbanization and mangrove clearance may affect populations, but the species continues to expand its range northward. Preservation of flower-rich lowland habitats supports healthy populations of this colorful Trochilini hummingbird.
Below is the Buff-bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia yucatanensis chalconota)
Photographed at Edinburg Scenic Wetlands WBC, Hidalgo, Texas, United States
This individual belongs to the subspecies chalconota, which occurs along the Gulf Coast from southern Texas through northeastern Mexico to northern Veracruz. It inhabits subtropical scrub, thorn forest, and coastal woodland, especially areas with flowering shrubs and trees.
The Buff-bellied Hummingbird is medium-sized with metallic green upperparts, cinnamon-rufous tail, and buff underparts. The northern form chalconota tends to be slightly paler below and brighter green above than the southern form. It is a common visitor to flowering shrubs, agaves, and garden feeders.
Below is the Buff-bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia yucatanensis yucatanensis)
Photographed in Chavarrillo and Reserva Natural Doricha, Emiliano Zapata, and Playa Juan Ángel – Desembocadura Río San Isidro, Ursulo Galván, Veracruz, Mexico
These individuals belong to the subspecies yucatanensis, which occurs from central and southern Veracruz south through Tabasco, Campeche, and the Yucatán Peninsula. It inhabits semi-open forest, plantations, and coastal scrub, often in areas with flowering Inga and Erythrina trees.
This form is slightly darker and richer in tone than northern birds, with a deeper buff belly and more rufous in the tail. It is active, territorial, and often vocal while defending feeding territories around flowering trees and garden patches.
