White-necked Jacobin (Florisuga mellivora mellivora)

23 January 2009, Rancho Naturalista, Costa Rica Many hummingbirds were attracted to the feeders at the lodge, but for the most part they were too close and too fast to photograph with my digiscoping setup. This male Jacobin posed on the metal rain gutter with a tin roof for a background. It may not be the most esthetic setting, but I'll take what I can get. A few head feathers are sticking up, wet from the rain. This is an adult male. We saw spectacular displays in which the males would face off, fanning their all-white tails. This is the smaller nominate race which ranges from Southern Mexico to Northern South America. On Tobago, a larger endemic subspecies F. m. flabellifera breeds. Panasonic Lumix LZ5 / Nikon FieldScope 3 / 30X WA hand-held (no adapter)