Black-chinned Hummingbird

Black-chinned Hummingbird

Archilochus alexandri

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Rocky Mountain National Park

In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%

106 Verified sightings at Rocky Mountain National Park From 2019 to 2026
2,384 In all 13 parks
May Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Black-chinned Hummingbird

The black-chinned hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) is a hummingbird occupying a broad range of habitats from deserts to mountain forests and urban areas in the western United States, southern British Columbia, and Mexico. It is migratory, wintering as far south as Mexico. In sunlight, an iridescent purple gorget forming a ring below the black chin feathers is a male characteristic. When in flight and hovering, its wings make a low-pitched humming sound.

The hybrid between the black-chinned hummingbird and Anna's hummingbird is called "Trochilus" violajugulum. The black-chinned hummingbird is also known to hybridize with Anna's, Lucifer, broad-tailed, and Costa's hummingbirds.

The black-chinned hummingbird is 8.25 cm (3.25 in) long. Adults are metallic green above and white-gray below with green flanks. Their bill is long, straight and slender. The adult male has a black face and chin, a glossy purple gorget (when accurately exposed to sunlight) and a dark forked tail. The female has a dark rounded tail with white tips and no throat patch. Juvenile plumage is similar to that of adult females, but with buff margins on the dorsal feathers. Juvenile... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:14

United States · 2019

© Thomas G. Graves · XC494996 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Wing-beat0:30

United States · 2017

© Russ Wigh · XC349692 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Flight display0:57

United States · 2016

© Richard E. Webster · XC324495 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Zion National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
2 Grand Canyon National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
3 Big Bend National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
4 Saguaro National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
5 Guadalupe Mountains National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
6 Cumbres de Monterrey National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
7 Joshua Tree National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
8 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
9 Death Valley National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
10 Rocky Mountain National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
11 Grand Teton National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
12 Glacier National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
13 Yosemite National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Salt Lake City 🇺🇸 United States
~30%
2 San Antonio 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
3 Ciudad Juárez 🇲🇽 México
~20%
4 Las Vegas 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
5 Mesa 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
6 Sacramento 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
7 Austin 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
8 Torreón 🇲🇽 México
~10%
9 Phoenix 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
10 Dallas 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum 🇺🇸 United States In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Black-chinned Hummingbird in Rocky Mountain National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black-chinned Hummingbird sighting in Rocky Mountain National Park on a given day, based on 106 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 122nd most-seen of the 223 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Black-chinned Hummingbird in Rocky Mountain National Park?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Black-chinned Hummingbird in Rocky Mountain National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Black-chinned Hummingbird?

Between 6 and 9 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-chinned Hummingbird sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Rocky Mountain National Park the best place to see a Black-chinned Hummingbird?

10th of 13

Of the 13 parks where we can rate Black-chinned Hummingbird sightings, Rocky Mountain National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Zion National Park (United States, about 20%), Grand Canyon National Park (United States, about 10%) and Big Bend National Park (United States, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Black-chinned Hummingbird live in Rocky Mountain National Park?

Same family: Trochilidae

The closest relatives of the Black-chinned Hummingbird that you can see in Rocky Mountain National Park (family Trochilidae, Hummingbirds) are Broad-tailed Hummingbird (about 50%) and Rufous Hummingbird (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Black-chinned Hummingbird sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Black-chinned Hummingbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Rocky Mountain National Park (106 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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