• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2021	Near Threatened	A2ac+3c+4ac
2016	Near Threatened	A2c+3c; C2a(i)
2012	Near Threatened	A2c+3c;C2a(i)
2008	Near Threatened	A2c; A3c; C2a(i)
2004	Near Threatened
2000	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1994	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1988	Threatened

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	medium
Land-mass type		Average mass	2 g

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	161,000 km2	medium
Area of Occupancy (breeding/resident)	40,000 km2
Number of locations	11-100	-
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	22000-66000 mature individuals	poor	estimated	2012
Population trend	decreasing	poor	inferred	2016-2026
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	20-29%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	20-29%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the past & future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	1-19%	-	-	-
Generation length	2.2 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	3	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	1-89%	-	-	-

Population justification: The species is described as 'uncommon' (Stotz et al. 1996). Density estimates range from 2.9-5.2 pairs/km² in humid and pine forest to 3.2-8.7 pairs/km² in semi-dry forests (González Alonso et al. 2012). Assuming that only 10% of the mapped extant range are occupied by the species to account for its rarity, the population may thus number c.11,000-33,000 pairs, equating to 22,000-66,000 mature individuals.

Based on observational records (eBird 2021), it is assumed that the species forms three subpopulations in the Guanahacabibes Peninsula and Sierra del Rosario, in the Zapata Swamp and its vicinity, and in the far east of the island. Based on the known population density, each subpopulation may number around 3,000-11,000 mature individuals.

Trend justification: There are no data on population trends; however, the species is inferred to be declining and has already disappeared from large areas where it was formerly considered abundant (Chai and Kirwan 2020). Declines are caused by habitat loss and degradation, as the species relies on mature, dense forest (Chai and Kirwan 2020). Over the past ten years, 5% of habitat has been lost within the range (González Alonso et al. 2012; Global Forest Watch 2021). The species's rapid disappearance from large parts of its range suggests that population declines are likely exacerbated considerably by additional degradation of mature forests. Tentatively, the rate of population decline is placed in the band 20-29% over ten years.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Bahamas	extant	vagrant			yes
Cuba	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Cuba	Alejandro de Humboldt
Cuba	Ciénaga de Zapata
Cuba	Desembarco del Granma
Cuba	Guanahacabibes
Cuba	Hatibonico - Baitiquirí - Imías
Cuba	La Mensura
Cuba	Mil Cumbres
Cuba	Pico Cristal
Cuba	Siboney - Juticí
Cuba	Sierra del Rosario

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Artificial/Terrestrial	Rural Gardens	suitable	resident
Artificial/Terrestrial	Subtropical/Tropical Heavily Degraded Former Forest	suitable	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Dry	major	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Lowland	major	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Montane	suitable	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Swamp	suitable	resident
Shrubland	Subtropical/Tropical Moist	suitable	resident
Altitude	0 - 800 m	Occasional altitudinal limits	(max) 1200 m

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Agro-industry farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Scale Unknown/Unrecorded	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Agriculture & aquaculture	Livestock farming & ranching - Agro-industry grazing, ranching or farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (large scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Bee Hummingbird Mellisuga helenae. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/bee-hummingbird-mellisuga-helenae on 26/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 26/12/2024.