Forest and Rangeland Birds of the United States

Natural History and Habitat Use

Allen's Hummingbird -- Selasphorus sasin


RANGE: Breeds from southwestern Oregon south through coastal California to Santa Barbara County. Resident in southern California in the Channel Islands and on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Winters in Mexico.

STATUS: Common.

HABITAT: Found within the Pacific coastal fog belt, inhabiting meadows, moist canyon bottoms, humid woody or brushy ravines, brushy edges of coniferous forest, coastal chaparral, and parks.

SPECIAL HABITAT REQUIREMENTS: Shade, preferably patchy, over the nest site, and flowers for nectar.

NEST: Usually builds nest on a site with several separate supports such as a dense tangle of vines. Less frequently, attaches nest to the side of a drooping twig or limb from 1 to 90 feet above the ground in trees such as oaks, eucalyptus, and Monterey cypress, or in shrubs in streamside thickets.

FOOD: Obtains nectar from a variety of flowers. Also hawks for small insects.

REFERENCES: Aldrich 1945, Bent 1940b, Harrison 1979, Terres 1980.


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