The Violet-crowned hummingbird loves our desert mountain canyons, and is a frequent visitor to Madera Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains south of Tucson.
With its bronze-green body and purplish-blue head, this is indeed a colorful and fun hummingbird to see and photograph. The beak is bright red and is tipped in black. The underside of this tiny bird is white.
The Violet-crowned hummingbird eats both insects and nectar, taking advantage of whatever is available.
Aside from Madera Canyon, you can see this hummingbird species in other riparian areas such as Ramsey Canyon in the Huachuca Mountains, and Sabino Canyon in the Santa Catalina Mountains, or any wet canyon with sycamore and cottonwood trees, since that is their favorite habitat.
Attracting hummingbirds to your backyard is easy to do, and its best not to use hummingbird feeders since sugar water is not the most nutritious food. Planting hummingbird plants is the best way to assure frequent visitors, and brings you the pleasure of flowers as well.
Reference: The Nature of Madera Canyon by Douglas W. Moore, Friends of Madera, 1999; whatbird.com
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