This species is characteristic of mountain meadows, and the distinctive trilling whistle of the male can be heard easily as it hovers near low flowers or flies full speed high over head. This loud trill is made by air moving quickly through gaps in the wing tip feathers. The nest is tended only by the female and is a tiny cup made of spider webbing, lichens and plant down. It is placed on a horizontal branch, often in a shrub near a mountain stream. Food is flower nectar, insects and spiders caught on leaves, and occasionally tree sap.
The four-digit banding code is BTLH.
