Mellisuga minima is restricted to Hispaniola (the Dominican Republic and Haiti) and Jamaica in the Greater Antilles; vagrants reported from Puerto Rico. It occurs in tropical and subtropical moist forests, dry forests, scrublands, gardens and other modified habitats from lowlands to 1,600 m. Avoids dense montane forest. This is the second-smallest hummingbird (length ca. 6 cm, including the bill; weight is 2-2.4 g). Vervain Hummingbird is green dorsally and pale ventrally, and lacks iridescence; bill is short; tail is short and slightly forked in males. It breeds from December through August or possibly year-round. The nest is a tiny cup of soft material, camouflaged with lichen or moss, often placed within 1 m of the ground on the branch of a tree or shrub. Clutch contains 2 tiny white eggs; incubation 16-19 days; fledging at ca. 21-25 days. This species is nectarivorous and insectivorous.

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