Hummingbirds are such amazing flyers and they are so quick that the first time you ever saw one, you probably weren't sure what it is that you saw!  Hummingbirds have long bills so they can obtain nectar from long tubular flowers.  They have short, stubby bodies with long wings.  Many birds have colorful feathers, but iridescent plumage is unique to hummingbirds.
 
Hummingbirds are small and fast compared to other birds.  They fly by a different mechanism and their flight is more like that of an insect than like that of other birds.  Once you have spent time watching a hummingbird fly, other birds appear clumsy.  They fly backward and forward and can hover so you can see their heads and beaks remaining still while their wings are beating so fast that they are a blur.

Like many other bird species, males usually more colorful than the females.  First year males look like females until they start developing their adult plumage.