The purple-crowned fairy (Heliothryx barroti) is a large hummingbird that breeds in the lowlands and hills from southeastern Mexico south to southwestern Ecuador. The scientific name commemorates Adolphe Barrot (1801–1870), a French diplomat who served in Colombia from 1831 to 1835.Its breeding habitat is forest canopy and edges at altitudes of up to 1,675 metres (5,495 ft), and this bird can also be found in tall second growth and shady gardens. The female lays two white eggs in a small conical cup nest, which is made of plant down and sited near the tip of a thin branch.