The bird is also known for its other common names – the Colibrí Pico Ancho in Spanish and Colibri circé in French.

[6] The emerald clade formed between 10 and 15 million years ago and has the largest diversity of species.

[10] The North American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society (AOS), the International Ornithological Committee (IOC), and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) recognize these three subspecies of broad-billed hummingbird:[11][5][12] These three taxonomic systems previously included two more subspecies, what are now the Tres Marias hummingbird (C. lawrencei) and the turquoise-crowned hummingbird (C. doubledayi) but by mid-2022 had recognized them as separate species based on 2014 and 2017 publications.

That taxonomy recognized the turquoise-crowned hummingbird but retained the Tres Marias as a subspecies of broad-billed.

[4] Like the note of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) the chatter sounds like a rapid chi-dit.

It prefers areas with streamside groves and dense vegetation, as well as open oak woodlands in lower canyons.

[18] It favours living in areas with Arizona sycamore (Platanus wrightii), Fremont cottonwoods (Populus fremontii), and mesquite.

[4] During breeding season, the broad-billed hummingbird is common in desert canyons and low mountain oak woodlands.

The breeding populations of C. l. latirostris in the United States, Sonora and Nuevo León are all migratory.

[4] Not enough information is known about the migration but it's believed that the birds fly deeper south into Mexico, into Guerrero and Baja California Sur.

[18] Their eating habits showed that the broad-billed hummingbird prefers visiting red or red-and-yellow flowers the most.

To feed on insects, the bird species can catch them midair or hover and pluck them from a plant.

), desert willow (Chilopsis linearis), New Mexico thistle (Cirsium neomexicanum), fireweed (Epilobium canum), coral bean (Erythrina flabelliformis), ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens), trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), scarlet bugler (Penstemon barbatus), Mojave beardtongue (P. pseudospectabilis), superb penstemon (P. superbus) and Texas betony (Stachys coccinea).

In southern Mexico, the Broad-billed hummingbird is known to eat from the following flower species:[4] Bejuco blanco (Exogonium bracteatum), pochote (Ceiba aesculifolia), cactus (Lemairocereus spp.

[4] This leads to food competition and therefore when co-occurring, the C. latirostris will feed from flowers with low-nectar availability.

[4] In central Mexico, the C. latirostris feeds on two cacti (Pachycereus weberi and Pilosocereus chrysacanthus.)

However, one study showed that even when there is an abundance of insects, the hummingbirds prefer to feed from flowers if available.

This display consists of the male broad-billed hummingbird hovering in front of the female and flying back and forth 4 times in repeated arcs, just like a pendulum.

[15] In the United States, there are usually 2 brood attempts per year, in mid-April to mid-to-late June and then again in July to mid-August.

[8] In Sonora and western Mexico, breeding starts mid-January, peaking in Mid March and ending in August.

[8] Nest site selection is thought to be less specific in individuals living towards the southern part of the range.