Hummingbird Eggs Are Even Tinier Than You Think

You know hummingbirds are tiny. If you’re observant, you may have also seen a teeny, well-crafted hummingbird nest. But unless you’ve had phenomenal luck, you probably haven’t been able to spot hummingbird eggs — which might not be too surprising, considering how small they are. Here’s what to know about hummingbird eggs.

How Small Are Hummingbird Eggs?

299891903 1 Paul Dufek Bnb Hpc 2022, hummingbird eggs — Courtesy Paul Dufek
Hummingbird eggs are incredibly tiny.

To put it mildly, they’re not very big! Hummingbirds’ eggs are the smallest bird eggs in the world, around 1 cm in length. If you’ve ever had a jellybean, a Tic Tac, or a blueberry, you have a good frame of reference for how tiny these eggs are. In addition, they weigh less than a paperclip. These extra small bird eggs are typically white in color.

Will a hummingbird use a birdhouse?

How Many Eggs Are in a Clutch?

A typical clutch size for common backyard species such as ruby-throats, Anna’s, and rufous hummingbirds consists of two eggs. Occasionally, a hummingbird will lay one or three eggs. Regardless of the clutch size, the female hummingbird takes on all the work: males play no role in raising young.

How Long Do Hummingbird Eggs Take to Hatch?

248483953 1 Joseph Brown Bnbhc20 — Courtesy Joseph Brown
Female hummingbirds incubate eggs and raise young by themselves.

A female hummingbird incubates eggs for between two and three weeks. She needs to be sitting on the nest to keep the eggs warm for approximately 75% of the time, which will keep them at the proper temperature to hatch. With the other 25% of her time — no more than 10 minutes in an hour — she zips out to feed herself.

After the eggs hatch, she feeds her young for another two to three weeks before the baby hummingbirds leave the nest.

Help female hummingbirds keep their energy up with this easy-to-make sugar water recipe.

How Often Do Hummingbirds Lay Eggs?

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Some female hummingbirds raise one brood — others might raise three.

The answer to this question depends on where a female hummingbird spends her time. In the colder northern states, a female who doesn’t arrive particularly early to her nesting grounds might be able to raise only one brood before she needs to start preparing for fall migration.

Farther south, however, a warmer climate means a hummingbird can raise multiple broods before winter sets in — and if winter is warm enough and resources abound, a mother hummingbird can raise up to three broods in a year.

Sources

Operation RubyThroat, “Hummingbird Reproductive Behavior“
Perky Pet, “How A Mother Hummingbird Cares for Her Babies“