The bee hummingbird, endemic to Cuba and the smallest bird on earth, appeared on a handful of Pacific island commemorative issues in the early 1990s as the wildlife coin market expanded rapidly among European collector distributors. Cook Islands was a particularly active participant — KM#227 is one of dozens of similar themed pieces produced for that market in this period, with actual distribution to the islands themselves essentially nonexistent.
The bee hummingbird, endemic to Cuba and the smallest bird on earth, appeared on a handful of Pacific island commemorative issues in the early 1990s as the wildlife coin market expanded rapidly among European collector distributors. Cook Islands was a particularly active participant — KM#227 is one of dozens of similar themed pieces produced for that market in this period, with actual distribution to the islands themselves essentially nonexistent.