Hummingbirds

[WAYNO]

First, other than being very intrigued by watching them fly around flowers, I know little about them.

Today I was watering the lawn with just my thumb over the end of the garden hose, when a hummingbird zeroed in on my activity. Flew right up next to the water stream, for maybe twenty seconds. Didn't know if he wanted a drink, or was just checking me out. Eventually he darted away as fast as he darted in.

Maybe not world-shaking news, but to me it was. 8)

WAYNO.

 

[737tdi]

WAYNO: Hummers are awesome little critters. We don't have a lot around here but for some reason when I'm mowing they are attracted to the Kubota (orange?). I keep meaning to take my camera to see if I could get a pic. of them but I always forget. The bees love orange as well.


Karl

 

[Silent Sam]

Get a feeder and or plant an appropriate garden and you might be surprised how many are in your area. They are amazing, aggressive birds and most of the time territorial around feeders. I have had them hover at hats and shirts of appropriate colors. With a little patience, they will feed right out of your hand. I always keep a feeder near outside sitting areas. Better than an aquarium. You don't have to clean a tank and the acrobatics are unbelievable. Only one species on the east coast but you should have a little more variety in Texas and the west coast.

 

[737tdi]

Get a feeder and or plant an appropriate garden and you might be surprised how many are in your area. They are amazing, aggressive birds and most of the time territorial around feeders. I have had them hover at hats and shirts of appropriate colors. With a little patience, they will feed right out of your hand. I always keep a feeder near outside sitting areas. Better than an aquarium. You don't have to clean a tank and the acrobatics are unbelievable. Only one species on the east coast but you should have a little more variety in Texas and the west coast.

I will be honest, I only do a garden for us. I grow more produce then most. Most every kind of pepper, tomatoes, okra, all kinds of beans, watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumbers. I can't grow much more? We usually have a garden that is almost an acre. We did not do one this year due to medical procedures. Dang, I sure miss the tomatoes and okra. I don't grow for birds. If they like what I grow I will probably be pissed. Kinda like gophers, you eat my plants I will get you.


Karl

 

[Dan in MI]

We get them fairly regular in my wife's 'inedible garden." :lol:


We used to go to a cabin up north quite often (wife's uncles) and I located a spot that was like a freeway intersection for hummingbirds. At this one spot hummingbirds would zip overhead in almost every direction nearly continuously. Move thirty feet one way or another and you wouldn't even know they were in the area. It was an amazing place to just sit and watch them zoom about their business.

 

[Fox Mike]

Had a pair doing their "loop de loop" dance over my head just yesterday. Rubythroats are all we see here. Have a pair of feeders that they frequent. Neat little birds

 

[Trucker]

First, other than being very intrigued by watching them fly around flowers, I know little about them.

Put up a humming bird feeder and place it where you can comfortably sit back and watch it. You'll be amazed and entertained. We have a feeder just inches outside both kitchen windows and we watch them as we sit at our breakfast table. Just be sure you fill the feeder with the proper syrup mixture, keep the syrup mixture fresh, and the feeder clean. Instructions should come with the feeder or you can easily find them by googling.

Also, there are some great and informative books on hummers. Really interesting. For example, some of the little hummers fly nonstop all the way across the Gulf of Mexico on the way to and from their winter feeding grounds in South America! They can easily reach unbelievable speeds in level flight. And so on and on. Amazing little creatures!

 

[SamV]

We almost never saw a hummingbird in our yard. My wife decided to plant a butterfly bush just outside our bedroom. It is irresistible to those creatures that feed on flowers. When it is in bloom sometimes it is just a bee or two, maybe a moth. Other times it is a congested traffic jam with hummingbirds, dozens of bees, dozens of butterflies, and a few other things. It can be fun to just stand there and watch. Try putting one or two in your garden. They are pretty much plant and ignore.

 

[#1rugerman]

Yes they are neat, I have two feeders, each one holds a pint of liquid, right now they are starting to fight over the feeders. Each one has a guard bird that tries to keep other birds away. At times it's like a air to air dog fight. Right now they are going thru about a pint of food every couple of days, in a few weeks it will by a pint a day. Sometimes I just sit out side and watch,

 

[Bull Barrel]

I was at my son's new home MS last week. They had a feeder a one end of the porch and a crepe myrtle tree at the other. There were so many hummingbirds fighting over the feeder we got another. Great fun to watch.

 

[Ruger Redhawk]

We have a half dozen or so feeders.
For some reason this year I've only seen a few of them when other years we were always seeing them. They are feisty little creatures. They sure don't play well together.

 

[Dan in MI]

Another hummingbird story.

We have a large window that birds often hit. Quite often they don't appear to be hurt badly but are seriously dazed. In the past we left them alone and very few survived. My wife has took to holding them in her hands and keeping them warm. It seems to have reduced the mortality rate drastically. Or all of hits in the past ten years became glancing blows.

One day at work I saw a male Ruby Throated on the ground near a large window. Bummed me out, but I noticed something that said he wasn't dead. I picked him up and kept him warm in my hands. I could see he was in "tilt" mode. It took about ten minutes and then he stood up. A couple minutes later he stepped out onto my fingers from my palm, looked around and flew off.

 

[Bob Wright]

O.K. Its a good time for this:

"Why do hummingbirds hum?"


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"They don't know the words."


Anonymous.

 

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

I think I have two "families" this year, for a total of six birds, that visit the feeders regularly. In the past, none of them would have anything to do with me when I was on the porch near the feeders. This year, though, several of them, the young ones I believe, will zoom around me to see what I'm up to, and if I stay still, they'll go back to the feeders.

The adult males? Different story, best described as "hummingbird wars." These little guys are territorial as can be, and aggressive like nobody's business. They probably burn up half their energy every day just chasing each other off!

One of the families is Anna's hummingbirds, the biggest and most common variety in my neighborhood. The other I'm pretty sure are Rufous hummingbirds. In the shade, the adult male's got a bright green back and red head and doesn't look much different from the Anna's except for being about 2/3 their size. But in the sun, he's gorgeous: bright shiny gold from top to bottom. It's taken months to even get a cruddy picture of him, though, sitting in the shadows. In the sun, he won't even come close to staying in once place long enough for a picture...

Rick C

 

[Montelores]

Sugar and pure water are all that's needed.

You can mix your own - 4:1.

If you're patient, you can stand very close to the feeder.

They're very gregarious and trusting.

Monty

http://birding.about.com/od/birdfeeders/a/nectarrecipe.htm

 

[Bob Wright]

I have watched hummingbirds at times and thought they sort of reminded me of WW II air battles such as the Battle of Britain! All that was lacking was the smoke and sound of machine gun fire.

Bob Wright

 

[Phoenix too]

Chickadees, I think, were the first to pioneer this trick (drinking the water out of the ant trap). Today one was hanging on to the hanger when a hummer blasted by, I swear the chickadee went for a spin like a window curtain flying up. Unlike the window curtain's multiple rotations, the chickadee only completed about half of one.





They are the most amazing flyers. Thanks for the thread!

 

[Phoenix too]

Chickadees, I think, were the first to pioneer this trick (drinking the water out of the ant trap). Today one was hanging on to the hanger when a hummer blasted by, I swear the chickadee went for a spin like a window curtain flying up. Unlike the window curtain's multiple rotations, the chickadee only completed about half of one.





They are the most amazing flyers. Thanks for the thread!

 

[AJGUNNER]

3 feeders on the deck and they go through a gallon every 2-3 days around here.

 

[Rick Courtright]

Chickadees, I think, were the first to pioneer this trick (drinking the water out of the ant trap).

Hi,

That's a neat trick! I've watched another one for a couple of weeks, a larger bird, sitting on the feeder just like a hummingbird and eating from the feeder just like he was a hummer. A buddy has the same kind of bird at his feeders and identified it as a hooded oriole. I'd never even heard of them, but looking at some pictures online, it seems they really like the hummingbird feeders, too...

Rick C

 

[737tdi]

I have watched hummingbirds at times and thought they sort of reminded me of WW II air battles such as the Battle of Britain! All that was lacking was the smoke and sound of machine gun fire.

Bob Wright

Bob, I feel the same way watching the swallows and martins. They are little P-51s. I have 2 nests on the east side of the house so they are flying everyday catching bugs. They get out there with me when I'm mowing the pasture. Dang they can maneuver. Now the Scissor Tails look closer to the more modern jets. Stop in midair do a Immelmann maneuver and catch a flying bug. They are so cool to watch.


Karl

 

[shootinfule]

Been hunting Canadians the last few years -- geese that is.
As you might suspect, there is ample time to daydream and think of the weighty issues facing all of us as we wait for that exciting "Honk! Honk! sound signaling the arrival of some possible action. Often when I'm just "passin' the time," I think about hummingbirds. You have probably heard that there are well-educated (not to be confused with highly-intelligent) scholars and naturalists that claim hummingbirds hitch rides on the backs of geese when migrating South. Now this is something to occupy one's mind. Not just whether or not it is true -- has anyone ever been close enough to a migrating goose to photograph a teeny little hummingbird hunkered down on a goose's shoulder at 2000 feet -- but how do they do it. Do they hitch rides in both directions or only Southern destinations?

So while I'm hunkered down in a fencerow or a ditch and hear geese flying so high that one cannot see them, I think about hummingbirds. Who was the first hummingbird to try it? (overheard at a beach resort in the gulf near a hummingbird feeder>>>) "Yeah, my great-great-great-grandfather, Chester Rufous Hummingway, was the bravest hummingbird ever. The weather was changing so fast that there just wouldn't have been time for his hummingbird clan to safely make the migration. Found a way to get his whole clan to Florida for the winter of ought-one, hitch-hiking on the backs of geese. They called him crazy for even suggesting it - said he would freeze to death at those high altitudes, said goose hunters might accidentally kill him, said the geese might get angry and peck him senseless, said you don't know where you'll end up, you'll be hopelesssly lost. But he proved them all wrong. Got his whole clan south for the winter without a single casualty. Heck, nowadays we don't even think twice about it. Just hitch a ride and off we go."

So how do they do it? Do they speak the same language? Do they need tickets? How do they book their flights? "Say, you guys wouldn't be stopping in Witchita, would ya?" Is it one hummingbird per goose or groups (a discount fare maybe)? How do they know when to get on? Where to get on? Do they ever get blown off if they fall asleep while riding along? Do they pack a lunch? Do they heckle the goose to stop at rest areas for food and relief?

This seems to be one of those universally accepted facts that just make me wonder how it works. Doubt that I'll ever figure it out, but it helps pass the time sitting in a goose blind. If I ever shoot a goose that has one of these little passengers, I'll probably quit huntin' and go on the talk show circuit (not likely).

 

[Dan in MI]

One carry on. Checked bags are 25 corn kernels.

 

[737tdi]

One carry on. Checked bags are 25 corn kernels.

Dan, it all depends on the airgoose. If it is a Southwest Airgoose, carryons and the first two checked bags are free. To bad Southwest doesn't fly to Canada, yet. :lol: :lol: :lol:


Karl

 

[WendyZXZ]

We have feeders out and the birds are always a lot of fun and entertaining to watch.

 

[Colonialgirl]

I put bird seed on the back porch rail and watch the Cardinals (male, female and NOW young-uns) come down to eat, got a Blue Jay that drops in now and then too; Got some Doves that eat like pigs and some kind of little Blue/grey bird s (males have a "Tuft" on their heads) and then there is a little bird with a black stripe up the back of his head.
I DID have to break out my Ruger pellet gun and now there are Three less squirrels in the world and on lucky one that got away. I put the dead squirrels on the wire fence between us and the neighbor and like a miracle it disappears later in the day or over night. (Four cats and two dogs next door, so somebody is grabbing a fresh meal)

 

[exavid]

I have watched hummingbirds at times and thought they sort of reminded me of WW II air battles such as the Battle of Britain! All that was lacking was the smoke and sound of machine gun fire.

Bob Wright

Bob, I feel the same way watching the swallows and martins. They are little P-51s. I have 2 nests on the east side of the house so they are flying everyday catching bugs. They get out there with me when I'm mowing the pasture. Dang they can maneuver. Now the Scissor Tails look closer to the more modern jets. Stop in midair do a Immelmann maneuver and catch a flying bug. They are so cool to watch.


Karl

I love to watch owls hunting - The avian version of the A10

 

[exavid]

I have it on solid authority that those geese are not Canadian. They apparently are Canada Geese. I don't know if that means they lost their passports or what but a Canadian friend once was very emphatic about that for some reason over a few bottles of Molson... or maybe it was Labatt Blue? I really don't remember the whole argument very clearly.

 

[Dan in MI]

some kind of little Blue/grey bird s (males have a "Tuft" on their heads)

Probably a Tufted Titmouse.

I have it on solid authority that those geese are not Canadian. They apparently are Canada Geese. I don't know if that means they lost their passports or what but a Canadian friend once was very emphatic about that for some reason over a few bottles of Molson... or maybe it was Labatt Blue? I really don't remember the whole argument very clearly.

Living in Mi near the Canadian border I can tell you that we have both Canadian and American Canada geese.

 

[CoyoteHunter_]

Sugar and pure water are all that's needed.

You can mix your own - 4:1.

If you're patient, you can stand very close to the feeder.

They're very gregarious and trusting.

Monty

http://birding.about.com/od/birdfeeders/a/nectarrecipe.htm

Pure Cane Sugar is what I use. And it's very important to keep the feeders clean and prevent mold or fungus from growing in the sugar water. I refrigerate my home made sugar water after I make it up and store it for later use. I clean out the feeder with hot water and ivory soap and then use some Clorox Spray Bleach Cleaner to sterilize the bird feeder's plastic parts. I rinse the chlorine out of the feeder parts with hot water and make sure that I rinse all the chlorine out of the plastic parts and the feeder.

The hot summer sun will cause the liquid inside the feeder to evaporate over time. The same hummingbirds will return year after year and their young will take their place over time.

And you guys are right about how territorial the males get over the feeders. Their aerial battles are fun to watch.

I sit on my back deck where the feeder are and watch the hummers all the time. They will eat a lot of small bugs too as they need protein to survive and don't just eat sugar water. Maybe they eat mosquitoes or gnats that fly around the deck. I'm not sure what type of insects they eat but know that they do eat some small insects.

We only have the Ruby Throated Hummingbirds around Southern IN where I live.