Museum of Southwestern Biology team uncovers the giant hummingbird’s extreme long-distance migration

News

Posted: May 15, 2024 - 12:00pm

Southern Giant Hummingbird. Photo credit: Christopher Witt

A team of researchers led by Dr. Christopher Witt, Curator of the Division of Birds at UNM’s Museum of Southwestern Biology, have uncovered the giant hummingbird’s extreme long-distance migration for the first time. Their eight-year study, Extreme elevational migration spurred cryptic speciation in giant hummingbirds published recently in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, led them to another important discovery: The world’s largest hummingbird is a new species.

The team, led by Dr. Jessie Williamson, UNM Biology Ph.D., 2022, included the Museum of Southwestern Biology at UNM, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile in Chile, and Centro de Ornitología y Biodiversidad in Peru.

Read the full story at UNM Newsroom.

Photo credit: Christopher Witt