Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts (Apodidae), the treeswifts (Hemiprocnidae), and the hummingbirds (Trochilidae). In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodimorphae in which hummingbirds are separated as a new order, Trochiliformes. With nearly 450 species identified to date, they are the most diverse order of birds after the passerines.
The booted racket-tails are a small group of hummingbirds in the genus Ocreatus that was long considered to have only one species, O. underwoodii. They are native to cloud forest edges in the South American Andes and Maritime Andes. They are relatively small and primarily iridescent green with white or rufous-buff leg-puffs ("boots"). The leg-puffs are more conspicuous in males, which also have a pair of dark bluish racket-shaped extensions to the tail.
The purple-chested hummingbird is a species of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae. It is found in Colombia and Ecuador. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and heavily degraded former forest. It is commonly hunted for the supposed medicinal properties of its beak by indigenous peoples in the area.
The visorbearers are hummingbirds in the bitypic genus Augastes in the family Trochilidae. The genus contains the following species:
Boissonneaua is a small genus of hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. They are found in humid Andean forests from western Venezuela to southern Peru. They have a straight black bill, contrasting outer rectrices, and a distinctive habit of quickly lifting both wings up shortly after landing, thereby revealing their rufous underwing coverts.
Chlorestes is a genus of hummingbirds.
Cynanthus is a genus of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae.
The caribs are a genus, Eulampis, of hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. The genus contains two species, both of which are endemic to the islands of the Caribbean. The genus name comes from the Ancient Greek word eulampēs meaning 'bright shining'.
Eupherusa is a genus of hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. It contains the following five species:
The buffy hummingbird is a species of bird in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. It is the only species placed in the genus Leucippus. This bird lives in dry forest and scrubland in northern South America where it feeds on insects and the nectar, flesh, and juice of cactus fruits.
The hillstars are hummingbirds of the genus Oreotrochilus. They are native to the Andes in South America.
Ramphomicron is a genus of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae. It contains two species:
Schistes is a genus of hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. It was long considered to have only one species, the wedge-billed hummingbird but this species was split. The genus now includes two species:
The barbthroats are a genus Threnetes of South American hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae.
Saucerottia is a genus of birds in the family Trochilidae, or hummingbirds.
Polytminae is one of the six subfamilies of the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The subfamily contains 12 genera with a total of 29 species.
Heliantheini is one of the two tribes that make up the subfamily Lesbiinae of the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other tribe in the subfamily is Lesbiini.
Lesbiini is one of the two tribes that make up the subfamily Lesbiinae in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other tribe is Heliantheini (brilliants).
Mellisugini is one of the three tribes that make up the subfamily Trochilinae in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other two tribes in the subfamily are Lampornithini and Trochilini (emeralds).
Lampornithini is one of the three tribes that make up the subfamily Trochilinae in the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other two tribes in the subfamily are Mellisugini (bees) and Trochilini (emeralds).
