[3][4] The green-throated carib was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Trochilus holosericeus.

[5] Linnaeus based his description on the "black-belly'd green huming bird" that had been described and illustrated by the English naturalist George Edwards in 1743.

Males have a medium length slightly decurved bill; the female's is longer and more strongly curved.

[10] The nominate subspecies is found from eastern Puerto Rico through the Virgin Islands and the Lesser Antilles chain as far as (but not including) Grenada.

Males are believed to defend flowering feeding territories all year but females do so only in the non-breeding season.

[10] The green-throated carib is believed to nest between March and July, and might depend on the timing of rain.

Its nest is a cup lined with soft fibers and has lichen and bark chips attached to the outside.