“Butterfly Army Unite,” from Federal Way, Washington, poet Alexandria Manalo, is part poetry volume, part activity book.

With the two books we’re spotlighting this week featuring hummingbirds and butterflies, how could our mood be anything other than iridescent?

Let’s begin with “A Little Book of Hummingbirds,” a delightful collaboration between the same duo that brought readers the Little Books of Flowers series, published by Seattle’s Sasquatch Books.

For the flowers, Seattle writer Tara Austen Weaver and Eugene illustrator Emily Poole focused on the historical backgrounds and profiles of dahlias, peonies and tulips.

We’re guessing that this book on the Trochilidae family will be Weaver’s and Poole’s first venture into a new ornithological series. What an appealing bird they have chosen to launch their new endeavor.

Hummingbirds range in size from the bee hummingbird, native to Cuba and about the size of an Italian prune plum, to the giant hummingbird, a denizen of the Andes, which grows to 8 inches or more in length, but still weighs significantly less than one pound.

In the Pacific Northwest, we’re most likely to see Anna’s hummingbirds year-round, and Rufous hummingbirds in the summer.

The book delves into hummingbird genealogy and geographic distribution, and how hummingbirds have been represented in different folklore traditions.

Because of their diminutive size, hummingbirds are vulnerable to predation not only by the usual suspects — cats, rats and so on — but also by dragonflies, spiders and frogs.

A chapter on “How a Hummingbird Works” looks into not only its remarkable flight capabilities, but also its versatile heart, which can beat over 1,200 times per minute when in flight, but slow down to 50 beats a minute when entering torpor — the hummingbird version of hibernation — in the chilly months of the year. The book also covers hummingbirds’ exceptional eyesight and even more remarkable tongues.

Weaver and Poole profile the 15 species out of 340 worldwide that live in North America.

They wrap up with four birdwatching sites in the American West where you’re apt to spy a veritable rainbow of hummingbirds. Unfortunately, none of these is in the Pacific Northwest.

But Weaver also offers sage advice (as in scarlet sage) as to what plants to grow in your garden if you want to establish a hummingbird haven of your own.

“A Little Book of Hummingbirds” is a colorful and inspiring book. It would make a lovely Mother’s Day gift — or could also serve as your pick-me-up.

We promised butterflies for today’s column, too: “Butterfly Army Unite,” is a creative mash-up of poetry volume and activity book, produced by Federal Way, Washington, poet Alexandria Manalo.

The title poem is a call to action, fueled by Manalo’s distress that the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary in Mexico, although designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, still suffers from climate change and habitat loss.

“Look to your demise / You lords of the flies,” she warns, then calls for “A new Monarchy,” and a “radiant Kingdom of Kindness.”

These nature-based poems contemplate life, death, celebration and connection.

This week’s books

“A Little Book of Hummingbirds” by Tara Austen Weaver

Sasquatch — 144 pp — $16.95

“Butterfly Army Unite” by Alexandria Manalo

Palmetto — 94 pp — $18.98