Is “more hummingbirds” the #1 birding reason to visit the desert & mountain US southwest? Maybe, but probably. Case in point, this gorgeous (wow!) male Purple Shooting Star outside the BIRDS field station:
[Editor’s note: Recall this is what we’re calling Costa’s Hummingbird now, absent official progress on the ‘de-Auduboning’ of honorific bird names.]
Relative to backyard/urban settings (e.g., water + feeder), the main Sonoran Desert hummingbirds (e.g., Anna’s & Costa’s) are rather territorial. These shots are of the beautiful “male in charge” of the rear desert habitat outside the BIRDS field station.
Thanks, Team Leader, for those incredible closeups of our sweet HB at the BIRDS field station! So cute!