The Uncaged Bird -My first Hummingbird has arrived 4/26/2024
mumstheword said:
So, yesterday the AC repairman was checking the outside fan-thing when he heard chirping by his ear and something fluffing his hair. Turned out it was a hummer chasing him away from the feeders -- which are at least 10 feet away! He loved it -- and said he never saw a green one before!
I'm noticing that there are two now at the feeders, chasing each other away like they did last year. Maybe it's the male and female, now that the baby(s) have grown? There is a smaller one who feeds alone. @morganna -- do you know how many eggs they tend to lay during each season? I wonder why I don't see more birds.
But they are hungry -- they drank an entire water bottle of nectar in 4 days. This is in addition to the other 3 feeders that are getting lower and lower.
The male will have the bright ruby red throat. It can look almost black if the light doesn't hit it. The female has the same green back, but the throat and belly are white. They lay 2 eggs typically but can lay 1 - 3.
That is a great story. Once my ex husband was eating an ice cream cone and one flew close to it. I'm reading that they can be shy so I'm noticing if I'm in the kitchen and I see one at the feeder I hold still. They seem to take their time drinking if they don't see me move. They are coming to the feeder on and off all day, sun up to sun down.
Thanks for the info @morganna. Earlier in the season I would see the red one and the green one separately feeding from all the feeders. In the last 10 days I see them both together, fighting each other for the newest feeder only. I put multiple feeders out so they wouldn't have to do that, but it doesn't matter! There is a smaller one who feeds by itself now and nobody fights with that one, so I'm thinking that's the baby. I have 2 feeders on either side of the house; 2 of them are in front of the kitchen window. Like you, if I'm at the sink doing something they will drink, but if I move, they fly away. Which is why I really can't get a good picture of them. Oh well!
mumstheword said:
Thanks for the info @morganna. Earlier in the season I would see the red one and the green one separately feeding from all the feeders. In the last 10 days I see them both together, fighting each other for the newest feeder only. I put multiple feeders out so they wouldn't have to do that, but it doesn't matter! There is a smaller one who feeds by itself now and nobody fights with that one, so I'm thinking that's the baby. I have 2 feeders on either side of the house; 2 of them are in front of the kitchen window. Like you, if I'm at the sink doing something they will drink, but if I move, they fly away. Which is why I really can't get a good picture of them. Oh well!
Which is my excuse for not being able to wash the dishes!
For pictures I use a zoom lens and stand back from the window. I keep it handy. But I haven't been lucky recently.
I planted Honeysuckle last year and it was savaged by the woodchuck, maybe the deer as well. But rather than give up I let it wind around the arbor this year and I have my first bud! It's highly recommended for Hummers. They are going back and forth to the feeder, not so much to the hanging basket but the tendrils of the alluring Honeysuckle may tempt them as they branch towards the feeder. Can't take credit for the picture below but I thought it might inspire some to plant it.
I have a planter box with an attached trellis and thought about planting some kind of climbing vine there this year, but I couldn't find anything that looked healthy in the places I went to. So I planted black eyed susans and something else (can't remember what) instead. But now that I have my side garden fully planted, I will look for honeysuckles next year.
So after 10 years in Wisconsin, I hadn't seen a single hummingbird in the yard (plenty at state parks, etc.) until late Saturday, when I stepped out on the porch and there she was, about 18 inches from my face, eyeing the red geraniums. She zoomed away seconds later, realizing she was not alone, but woo hoo!!
mjc said:
So after 10 years in Wisconsin, I hadn't seen a single hummingbird in the yard (plenty at state parks, etc.) until late Saturday, when I stepped out on the porch and there she was, about 18 inches from my face, eyeing the red geraniums. She zoomed away seconds later, realizing she was not alone, but woo hoo!!
In Wisconsin? Was it the same kind we get here, the Ruby Throated?
Just found this link so yes you get the Ruby Throated but have had a few rare hummers as well.
My little book says the local one is Ruby Throated. This one was pretty plain in the front, so assuming female.
As far as their range, I once saw one in a pass in the Sierra Nevada, about 8,000 or 10,000 feet, and strong wind there, too. Amazing. That one seemed to be checking out our backpacks (red, gold, etc.) at the time.
how exciting is that?!? 
Talk about super-shy.
We're currently enjoying the company of a large flock of plovers. Think they're resting for a bit on their way between seasonal long-term habitats, although they are known hereabouts (just not especially in these numbers).
Funniest thing just happened: we were returning home from a morning doing grocery shopping, and D stopped just before our driveway so I could jump out of the car. I pointed out the two plovers standing guard-duty across the road and up one house - looked like they were guarding the mailbox. As I walked up to collect our post, one plover loudly began telling me off then marched up to keep me away (I was already back at the car, grabbing shopping!); turns out their baby chick was trying to walk in our neighbour's front yard!!! Teeny little thing, barely 6 inches tall, all legs and a fluff of cotton-wool on top. Once in the shade, it got cold so scurried back to Mum across the road while Dad was still telling us to stay away.
I'm guessing they were trying to teach it to scratch for food itself, instead of relying on what they bring back. Fascinating seeing how still and alert they were, guarding the chick yet allowing the independence to learn.
This a google pic of the birds, to show size.
With only very rare exceptions, the only hummers in the east are ruby-throated. But travel to the southwest and you can see a great variety of different hummingbird species. And if you go to the tropics, even more! We've seen a lot of different hummingbirds in our travels, but can't seem to succeed in attracting them here at home 
You've got to look out for Shaun the Sheep episode Zebra ducks of the Serengeti: it's sooooo funny!! (Maybe on YouTube?)
joanne said:
Yes it is: both funny ... and on YouTube -
Well, forget the hummingbirds. Today I saw my first bee! I can't remember the last time I saw an honest to God bee (lots of wasps) -- except for the ones that eat wood in the spring -- which was when I lived in Maplewood (my neighbor had a nest of them in his garage -- don't ask). As I raised the blinds to see the beautifully blooming crepe myrtles, there was a bee going back and forth among the flowers. I also hung a bee house in the middle of them, so hopefully it will attract more.
is the varroe mite still doing masses of damage to bees and hives there as in Europe and here? It's kind of a wonder we still have natural honey, and natural pollination.
Just sailed ever-so-elegantly past our balcony, not a care in the world...(you can't see the size well, it's a very large black swan, swimming quite fast. He's almost up to my hips in height)
Swans and Bees! Lot's of winged beastie's out there!
And I spotted a Raven!
I love them as much as I love Owls!
I was driving and noticed a sizeable black bird, a crow.
But then a bigger bird flew down to the pavement and took a clunky bounce and there he was! That huge heavy bill and stocky physique. Wow! It was on a 4 lane street. Where did he even come from? Who cares I finally saw a Raven!
And "Quoth the Raven Nevermore!"
Wow! That is cool. I'd love to see a Raven in the wild. There's a murder of crows that hangs out near the brook by the Jefferson school, usually in the spring and fall, but I've never sighted a Raven.
Two Hummingbirds are now daily visitors to my feeder. Here's the best pic that I've been able to take. They are very camera shy.
Sweetsnuggles said:
Wow! That is cool. I'd love to see a Raven in the wild. There's a murder of crows that hangs out near the brook by the Jefferson school, usually in the spring and fall, but I've never sighted a Raven.
Two Hummingbirds are now daily visitors to my feeder. Here's the best pic that I've been able to take. They are very camera shy.
Great!
And like @joanne, I love the phrase "a murder of crows." I once had a book that had all of the terms, "a gaggle of geese, etc. I just looked for a phrase for hummingbirds and these were my 2 favorites:
a hover of hummingbirds or a charm of hummingbirds. Which do we like best?
Here's my favorite for the bird made famous by Poe. A Conspiracy of Ravens.
,
Spotted an amazing Hummingbird Moth at Morris County Farms yesterday. Wasp like insects that hover like Hummingbirds and have a long beak like proboscus to suck nectar!
those wings are like jewelry...incredible!
I've just the collective is 'a ballet of swans' but I'm not sure how many you need to comprise your corps de ...
Outside this morning I spotted a hummingbird patiently sipping from the red salvia going from one to the other. Just when I thought that my Humzinger had made having a cocktail too easy to bother with flowers, bingo! So the moral of the story is that although there is a plethora of fast food chains, there will always be patrons of 4 star restaurants.
I gave up on my feeder a few weeks ago, but am still tending my (now tired) hanging pot flowers. Just now, when I was watering them, a female hummingbird buzzed up and sampled them all! <3
(First one I've seen since early last summer!)
sac said:
I gave up on my feeder a few weeks ago, but am still tending my (now tired) hanging pot flowers. Just now, when I was watering them, a female hummingbird buzzed up and sampled them all! <3
(First one I've seen since early last summer!)
Yay! They are coming frequently now . Someone on Next Door said it's slow for her until her Monarda start blooming.
My Coneflowers are struggling against the Woodchuck attacks but I'm waiting for the Goldfinches to return.
I resisted the temptation to buy the gorgeous colorful ones recently as the Chucks are so bent on destroying them. Having great success with the red Lobelia annuals and they are there to attract the Hummers.
I saw my hummers buzzing around my newly-planted and blooming crepe myrtles last evening. I had closed the blinds, but the sun was still shining, and I could see their shadows buzzing around. Wished I could have gotten a video of that -- it was really neat!
mumstheword said:
I saw my hummers buzzing around my newly-planted and blooming crepe myrtles last evening. I had closed the blinds, but the sun was still shining, and I could see their shadows buzzing around. Wished I could have gotten a video of that -- it was really neat!
I love crepe myrtle. My friend bigben gave me one but it didn't make it. Beautiful shrub. I just started noticing them a couple of years ago. Maybe they are growing in popularity. I saw one of my Hummers buzzing around the dead flowers of my Mountain Laurel.
Do you get any goldfinch in your area?
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So, yesterday the AC repairman was checking the outside fan-thing when he heard chirping by his ear and something fluffing his hair. Turned out it was a hummer chasing him away from the feeders -- which are at least 10 feet away! He loved it -- and said he never saw a green one before!
I'm noticing that there are two now at the feeders, chasing each other away like they did last year. Maybe it's the male and female, now that the baby(s) have grown? There is a smaller one who feeds alone. @morganna -- do you know how many eggs they tend to lay during each season? I wonder why I don't see more birds.
But they are hungry -- they drank an entire water bottle of nectar in 4 days. This is in addition to the other 3 feeders that are getting lower and lower.