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How does the ruby-throated hummingbird cross the Gulf of Mexico during migration?

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Illustration of a chestnut-collared swift (Cypseloides rutilus) in flight, showing its dark brown body and wings with a distinctive reddish-brown collar around its neck. — Apodiform Chestnut-collared swift (*Cypseloides rutilus*)

The ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) crosses the Gulf of Mexico during its migration by flying nonstop across the water. This journey covers a distance of more than 800 km (500 miles).123

While this feat was historically recognized, it long preceded a full physiological understanding of how such a small bird could sustain the necessary metabolism for such a demanding flight. These hummingbirds, which nest in southern Canada and the eastern United States, undertake this migration to reach their wintering grounds in Central America and as far south as Panama.214