Arrival

I first spotted the hummingbird at our cabin on May 9.  It was flying in circles at the corner of the overhang, where, over many years, Kathie has hung the sugar feeder.  The feeder had not yet been hung, but the hungry migrant was reminding us where to put it.  The little jewels have been gracing the days, one by one, throughout the season of weeds and seeds at Pleasant Valley Conservancy.

Tiny Acrobatic Athletes

The ruby-throated hummingbird is more than familiar to everyone in Wisconsin.  It is our one Midwest hummingbird species.  The birds winter in South Florida, Texas, Mexico and Central America.  They fly across the Gulf of Mexico in one non-stop trip, losing half their body weight in the process.   That means they go down to the weight of a penny.  (There are 150 ruby-throated hummingbirds per pound.)   We see them fly backward and upside down, as well as forward at up to 30 miles per hour.  When feeding, they literally fly while barely moving so they can dip their long tongues into a flower and sip nectar.

Feeder with male and female Ruby-throats

Manners

After Kathie put up the feeder, I noticed the little hummers like to fight with each other for possession of the little entries to the sugar water.  In nature, flowers are usually spaced more widely, so I expect they don’t fight as much, but considering the vast amounts of fuel they burn with a heart rate up to 1,200 beats per minute, and wing beats uncountable, their fuel sources must be precious enough to battle over at times.  Their needs overcome their manners.

Would distributing single-hole feeders, like those at left, throughout your yard help restore hummingbird civility?

On August 31, while I was admiring the great blue lobelia and stiff goldenrod blossoms, a ruby-throat zipped by my ear and began sipping from a nearby old-field thistle flower (at right).  Then it hovered over several blossoms of Gaura.  I had never seen hummingbirds feed from thistles or Gaura before, so I decided to take a loser look at the flowers.  You’ll note that each flower has tubular elements ideal for long bills and tongues.  So, what kinds of flowers in the prairies and savannas and marshes are hummingbirds using?

On September 13, I drove the mule up the hill to collect purple hyssop and tall bellflower seed in our knoll savanna.  As soon as I got out of the 4-wheeler, a hummer zoomed to within three feet, hovered for a few seconds at eye level, then, deciding the red mule wasn’t the biggest nectar find of its lifetime, flew off for more modest, but sweeter, sources.  At right, Tom is demonstrating the mule in question, while Kathie is attempting to attract hummingbirds on her own.