The Insane Biology of: Hummingbirds

Hundreds of hummingbird species rely on flowers for food while over 7,000 flowering plant species rely on hummingbirds for pollination (key reproduction step), undergoing coevolution where frequently-interacting species influence each other’s evolution beneficially.

Hummingbirds are the world’s smallest birds (7-13cm, 3-5 inches, weighing only a couple pennies) possessing unmatched flying abilities—capable of flying in any direction, hovering in place, and backwards flight totally unique among birds.

Hummingbirds possess “straight up insane” metabolism processing nectar energy in as little as 30 minutes (versus humans’ full day or longer), enabling them to power 100% of metabolic activity directly from food while foraging.

Hummingbirds possess long tube-like beaks perfectly suited for reaching deep into flowers to lap up nectar—“the literal secret sauce behind their success”—a superfood readily available anywhere with flowering plants and incredibly energy-rich.

Female hummingbirds are “very choosy about what features they want their partners to have,” driving male evolution of stunning coloration and “crazy features” like super-long tails (violet-tailed sylph, booted racket-tail) despite making flight harder and providing predator grab-targets.

Hummingbirds possess the widest variety of feather colors of any bird family, but rather than coming from pigments, colors arise from unique feather structure reacting with light through iridescence—making color “much more than just decoration” as one of their most important communication tools.