Description
Anna's Hummingbird, Calypte anna
Flora: hibiscus, drawn by Maria Martin
Print size: 26 1/4" x 39 1/4"; image size: 12" x 19"
Princeton Audubon Limited Edition - produced 1985
Based on a composition probably painted in London in 1838.
Audubon received the female and nest from Thomas Nuttall, who collected them in the Rocky Mountains. The four males at the top of the print were drawn from specimens Audubon found in an English collection.
Anna's hummingbird is slightly larger than other West Coast hummingbirds and is the only hummer to remain constantly throughout this area in winter. The others cross the border into Mexico. In the early spring the male often makes quite an effort at singing, though this sounds to some like a high-pitched squeak rather than a song. There is no mistaking the peculiar popping noise he makes at the bottom of his pendulum courtship flight.
EHJ
Princeton Audubon prints are direct-camera facsimile lithographs of the Robert Havell Jr. (1793-1878) engravings for The Birds of America (1827-38). Princeton's Double elephant Folio prints are issued in limited editions of 500 or 1500 prints. All are numbered and have a seal in the bottom margin to demonstrate their authenticity.
Printed on heavy Mohawk paper that is recommended by the Library of Congress for archives, the paper is specially toned to match the average paper color of the antique originals.
Item Number:
1736
