A species
Ruby-throated hummingbird
Archilochus colubris
A tiny bird that can fly backwards.
You and the ruby-throated hummingbird last shared an ancestor about 320 million years ago (on 4 December, if life's history were one year).
This tiny bird beats its wings up to about 50 times a second as it hovers over a flower to feed. It can hover, fly forwards and fly backwards, and backs away from a flower after feeding. Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards in a controlled way. Surprisingly, the emperor penguin and barn owl beside it on the tree are its bird cousins.
It is about 7 to 9 centimetres long, with a glittering green back and a pale grey-white belly. It has a long straight bill like a needle, and its pointed wings blur in flight. The male has a shiny ruby-red throat that can look jet black in poor light. The female has a plain whitish throat. It weighs about 3 to 4 grams, about as much as a penny.
A tongue like a tiny pump
Its tongue can stretch about twice as long as its bill. Scientists think it works like a tiny elastic pump to draw up nectar from flowers.
Sees secret colours
It probably sees colours people cannot see, like other hummingbirds tested by scientists. Those birds mix ultraviolet with red or green to make new colours we can only imagine.
Nonstop across the Gulf
Many fly nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico in autumn. The trip is about 800 kilometres and takes about 18 to 20 hours when conditions are good.