[8][9] Both sexes of both subspecies have a short, straight, blackish bill and a small white spot behind the eye.

The rest of the tail feathers are reddish cinnamon at their base and black in the middle, often with a bronzy green band between the colors, and have a wide white tip.

The tail has less and duller reddish cinnamon and more black than the male's, and the outer feathers' tips are more off-white than white.

The female has smaller metallic spots on the throat, the flanks and undertail coverts are light buff rather than cinnamon, and the tail feather tips are pure white.

The nominate subspecies is found in northeast, central, and southern Mexico from Tamaulipas to Guerrero and Oaxaca.

[8] Though the bumblebee hummingbird is generally considered sedentary, there is evidence that it makes seasonal movements between pine-oak forest and cloudforest.

[8] Male bumblebee hummingbirds make a courtship display by hovering in front of a female with the gorget spread and tail cocked up.

In contrast, Ortega-Álvarez et al. noted nesting activity from late January into early March during a study in Oaxaca.

The bumblebee hummingbird's song has been described as "a high, thin, whining sss ssssssssis or seeuuuuu, drawn out and fading at end", and is sung from a perch.

The male's wings make an insect-like buzz in flight; it is louder during the courtship display.