A cluster of discoveries that changed how we picture a hummingbird's world. It covers a sweet-taste receptor rebuilt from umami, optic-flow neurons tuned for hovering, colours beyond the human spectrum, a song above usual bird hearing, and scent-guided foraging.
Discoveries
2014 Hummingbirds taste sugar through a remodelled T1R1–T1R3 umami receptor.
2017 Neurons in the pretectal nucleus LM show direction and speed tuning unlike those of finches and pigeons.
2020 Wild broad-tailed hummingbirds discriminate nonspectral colours such as UV + green and UV + red.
2020 The Ecuadorian hillstar sings and responds at unusually high frequencies.
2021 Hummingbirds avoid feeders carrying chemical cues from ants.