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Hummingbirds

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The 328 species of hummingbirds form an entirely New World family. They have always fascinated humans. Mayans told how they were the scraps left after other birds were created. Watching them defend their territories, the Aztecs declared them warriors in bird form, back on earth after dying in battle and serving the Sun for four years. Observing their nests, Taroscans said hummingbirds taught them basket-weaving, while some Andean tribes consider them symbols of the Resurrection, as they awake from their unique torpor in cold temperatures. Some of the more visible hummingbirds at the DWA are: Sparkling violetear (Colibri coruscans), Green mango (Anthracocothorax viridis), Green-throated Carib (Eulampis holosericeus), Puerto Rican emerald (Chlorostilbon maugaeus) and the Giant hummingbird (Patagona gigas).

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