When limits on the exploitation of shared resources are exceeded among morphologically similar species, competitive exclusion and/or character displacement is expected. However, competition may not be sufficiently intense to engender these phenomena, but it may alter the densities of their local populations, a deterministic phenomenon known as density compensation. Hummingbirds are the most phenotypically specialized nectar‐feeding birds, and trait variation within their communities may facilitate finer resource partitioning, which is ideal to test hypotheses related to coexistence. Here, we used simulation models to investigate whether hummingbird ensembles with high morphological similarity to one or several competitors display a reduction in population density as a result of competition in two contrasting habitats (pine forest and second‐growth vegetation). In both habitats, four scenarios based on morphological proximity to neighbors were analyzed non‐parametrically using multivariate metrics. No evidence of density compensation was found in the pine forest in any scenario. Conversely, evidence of density compensation in the second‐growth habitat was found, with the relationship strongest when scenarios represented competition between more proximal neighbors. Our data suggest that the redistribution of hummingbird species between contrasting habitats leads to certain subgroups of morphologically similar species having to pay a population cost to coexist in a given habitat due to density compensation. Thus, competition may not be the leading determinant of hummingbird ensemble structures, which instead appears to be attributable to a combination of mechanisms that operate at local and regional scales, such as source‐sink dynamics.

Las aves son parte importante de la gran diversidad que albergan en los ecosistemas alrededor del mundo, particularmente aquellos con cierto grado de conservación, que pueden estar o no integradas a un régimen de protección o aprovechamiento. Este grupo es un componente del paisaje y de la biodiversidad que existe en áreas naturales principalmente, especies silvestres que se han adaptado a los disturbios como el cambio de uso de suelo, para la urbanización y actividades industriales, tales como el turismo de masas. Estas últimas actividades generalmente no han respetado la vegetación nativa y las especies que tiene en ese lugar su hábitat son desplazadas hacia áreas no perturbadas o en su defecto desaparecen. Estudios en las últimas dos décadas han demostrado que esta actividad turística tiene importantes efectos en las aves, particularmente en su comportamiento, fisiología, que denotan un elevado estrés ambiental y hormonal, los cuales potencialmente afectan los aspectos fisiológicos que generan estrés hormonal y afectan su éxito reproductivo.