My Passion for the Beautiful Hummingbird.....

Today, I decided to ~Take the time~  and share my passion for the amazing , beautiful
                                                                Hummingbird
My Special joy each day during the late Spring and Summer season is to sit on our deck and enjoy the Hummingbirds as they feed from our feeders and flowers in the yard.  We also have  a forest  like setting in our yard with a lot of Pine trees. The Hummingbirds like to roost and nest in them.

As I share some of my pictures that I have taken I will print some information under the pictures that I found on  "About. com"   about the Hummingbird.

                                                                

          There are more than 325 Hummingbird species in the world.  Only 8 species regularly breed in the United States, though up to 2 dozen species my visit the country.

A Hummingbird must consume approximately 1/2 of it's weight in sugar daily and the average feeds 5 to 8 times per hour.  Plants, feeders and insects provide food for them. 

 

Their wings beat between 50 and 200 flaps per second depending on the direction of flight and air conditions. Their maximum forward flight speed is 30 miles per hour.  Though the birds can reach up to 60 miles per hour in a dive.

 

They have 1,000 to 1,500 feathers, the fewest number of any bird species in the world.

                                                                
  The average Ruby-throated Hummingbird weighs 3 grams.  In comparison, a nickel weighs 4.5 grams.

                                                            
  Hummingbirds cannot walk or hop though their feet can be used to scoot sideways while they are perched.      

                                                     
 The Hummingbirds heart rate is more than 1,200 beats per minute.
It takes  them an average of 250 breaths per minute.

  
They do not suck nectar through  their long bills. They lick it with fringed fork tongues.  

                                                                                       

The Hummingbirds lay the smallest eggs of all Birds.  They measure less than 1/2 inch length but may represent as much as 10% of the mother's weight at the time the eggs are laid.    


It always amazes me how these little birds survive among all the larger birds of prey. But they do. And they will go after larger birds if they or their nests are threatened.  We see this many a time when observing them.

One morning as I sat in my kitchen and did not have my camera with me at that moment, I glanced out the slider and saw a Catbird  sitting on the deck railing. He had his head cocked to one side and was watching the Hummingbird eating from the feeder. HE was very intent on watching what they were doing.  After the Hummingbird flew away, the Catbird went over to the feeder and tried to put his beak down in the hole. It was so funny. I am thinking maybe he was trying to get the ants that frequent the feeder along with the bees.
 

                                                                                                                           

There are usually tons of them crawling around on the feeders. Well, whatever his reason, he was fun to watch  UNTIL   the Hummingbird  came back to eat.  Well, that big old mean Catbird chased the Hummingbird away.  I was not happy with him. My husband and I both ran out and chased him away.  NO ONE FOOLS WITH MY HUMMERS!!! 

My husband decided to put more suet out for the birds,  hoping that would deter him or any other larger birds from coming around.  After reading about the Hummingbirds on the site, I see that they can stand up for themselves with the bigger birds. But at that point I did not know that, and all I wanted to do was protect my babies.

When we fill the feeders we put 3 parts boiling water with 1 part sugar. We let it sit until it cools and than fill the feeders.  What we have left over we keep in the refrigerator  as it has sugar in it. ( I almost wrote icebox) That is what we called them when younger. I have to correct myself when talking to the girls when I ask them to get something out of the icebox.  IT is like" Nana" it is a refrigerator. Oh, yes, times do change. I will tell them the story about how they used to bring chunks of ice to the homes and put it in the icebox to keep our food cool.. I am sure their eyes will just roll in their heads.!!
hee hee


Hope everyone is keeping cool. And enjoying their week. Is there a special type of bird that you enjoy watching?  I have many,but the Hummingbird  is my favorite.

                                                                   
                                                                 Hugs  Eileen