Broad-tailed Hummingbird

One of the most abundant birds in sub-alpine meadows was the Broad-tailed Hummingbird. I first heard them at Fish Creek Falls in Steamboat Springs. They were all over the place in Grand Lake, and feeders were hanging along the store fronts. It made it hard for me to focus during dinner.

Close-up of the above photo. They look a lot like our Ruby-throats, but they are actually in a different genus (Selasphorus platycercus).

A close-up of the gorget with the light hitting it just right.

I was happy to get some pictures of the Hummer at some gooseberry-looking bushes near the Alluvial Fan in the Rocky Mountain National Park. The hummingbirds and the flowering shrubs were very thick that afternoon.