See How a Hummingbird Hovers in Amazing Detail
Meet the Magnifcent hummingbird. Also known as the Rivoli's hummingbird, it is one of over 340 species of hummingbird in the world. By rotating their wings in a figure 8 motion, hummingbirds can hover in mid-air, an amazing feat that they use to drink nectar from flowers.
See more of Costa Rica's charismatic wildlife in
Untamed from Nat Geo Wild. Follow filmmaker Filipe DeAndrade and his two best friends as they travel throughout Costa Rica in search of the most diverse, iconic and unexpected animal species the country has to offer.
There are nearly 340 known species of hummingbirds.
All hummingbirds depend on flower nectar to fuel their high metabolism.
By rotating their wings in a figure 8, they are the only birds that can hover in mid air.
Competition for food is fierce as they consume around half of their body weight in nectar every day.
As they feed on flowers, pollen accumulates on their head and beak ...
...making them natural pollinators and vital to their ecosystem.
