Blue-Headed Hummingbird (Wild Animals by Papo)

There are criminally few toys of hummingbirds, which are surely some of the most beloved and extraordinary birds across the Americas. Perhaps their diminutive size and delicate forms intimidate toy manufacturers, or maybe they just get bad luck of the draw when new releases are chosen. Whatever the cause, toy companies have left a vacuum in this corner of bird collectibles; so any new contribution is to be welcomed. The most notable recent entry comes from Papo’s Wild Bird series*, released in 2022, and my thanks goes to Happy Hen Toys for providing a sample of this figurine to review (be sure to check out their catalog of figures for sale through the link in the banner above).

_{*different sources cite different series names, but Happy Hen Toys lists the figure under this name, so that’s what we’ll go with here.}

Papo’s hummingbird figure comes as a solid plastic figurine posed atop a small base with wings outstretched, giving the appearance of the bird readying to take flight. With the base included, the figurine stands just under 5 cm (2 in) tall at the tip of the bill, and stretches 6 cm (2.37 in) long at the angle from bill to tail. The wingtips are 6 cm apart, but the full wingspan would measure 9 cm (3.5 in) if the wings were fully stretched to the sides. It’s an appropriately diminutive toy for the animal it represents, but not too small to compromise serious detail.

Plenty of feathery textures can be observed, with the most defined feathers being featured on the head, chest, and of course the wings and tail. Each wing displays distinct rows of pennaceous feathers and large flight feathers, while the head and chest feathers’ rounded rows emphasize the colors present on the figure. The bill is long and ever so slightly curved, sculpted shut but with the separation of upper and lower mandibles still evident on a close look. The feet have nice details as well, with each toe distinguishable and signs of scales on the legs; however, they blend into the base somewhat due to the patterns of choice on said base. The wings are appropriately straight and flipper-like in shape (there’s a small error at the tip of one wing on mine, looking slightly warped), and the tail feathers are spread out into a rounded fan shape.

The color palette for Papo’s hummingbird is largely dichromatic: teal green and indigo blue dominate the plumage, with the teal most obvious on the flanks and wing midsections, while the indigo spreads down the throat & stomach, plus down the head & back all the way to the tail. There is a slight glossy finish to the toy, which aids in the appearance of iridescence to the plumage. I usually prefer my animal toys without gloss, but it’s absolutely a benefit here! Underneath the vivid hues, the figure is a base black for contrast. The eyes and bill are also black, or a very dark gray; meanwhile the flight feathers and the underneath of the tail feathers are striped black and dark coffee brown.

All in all, Papo’s hummingbird appears to be a delightful figurine. There’s just one, glaring issue for me that makes clinching a full-star review on it difficult. As of 2025, there are as many as 375 recognized species of hummingbird spread across the American continents, each with their own uniquely quirky traits and colorful plumage patterns – and for whatever reason, Papo couldn’t be bothered to clarify which species the toy is supposed to be. Without a clear reference point, it’s very hard to determine how thoroughly Papo actually researched this toy, much less if they meant it to actually represent a particular species. After doing a LOT of scouring the internet for good images of as many of the hundreds of species as possible, I have currently come to the conclusion that Papo’s figurine most closely resembles the male blue-headed hummingbird, Riccordia bicolor (hence my review title).

Described in 1788, blue-headed hummingbirds are classified in the “emeralds” tribe of hummingbirds, and are only found on the two Islands of Dominica & Martinique in the Caribbean sea. Adults reach sizes of just 9-11 cm (3.5-4.3 in) long, which puts the Papo figurine at 1:1.5 to 1:1.8 scale. Like the figurine, the male animals have a mostly black beak and black base feathers, overlaid with iridescent bluish-green and violet-blue feathers that spill down the body and wings from the head. The living hummingbird also sports a subtle red lower mandible and some lighter gray feathers at the underparts. One caveat to this identification is the blue-headed hummingbird is reported to have a slightly forked tail, which is not evident in the figurine.

While the lack of identification is a frustrating oversight on Papo’s part – and quite frankly a missed opportunity for education – the Wild Birds “Blue-headed” hummingbird is still a very nice figurine, and arguably unique on the market for its quality and for the (speculated) species represented. Lifelike hummingbird toys are practically nonexistent on the market right now, so I recommend this figure for any bird enthusiast young or old. Maybe if if continues selling well enough, Papo will produce another hummingbird toy and actually identify it this time.

My thanks goes out again to Happy Hen Toys for their generosity and patience in supplying this sample to review for the Animal Toy Blog. You can, of course, order your own hummingbird and other Papo Wild Animals by visiting the Happy Hen Toys web shop linked below.