Recent Activity in the Backyard - Mostly Hummingbirds

     We like to think of our backyard as a little urban oasis, and we feel that our claim has been validated of late.

     The excessive heat of summer is unkind to man and beast alike and Eastern Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) find ways to stay cool.

     A fur coat is perhaps a disadvantage at times!

     Mourning Doves (Zenaida macroura) are fixtures in our yard, and their numbers build up into the winter when it is not unusual to see twenty or more, attracted by the food we provide, of course.

     They seek shade in the foliage and drink regularly from the bird bath.

     It would be wise for this Common Carpet Moth (Epirrhoe alternata) to seek a little more cover, lest it become a quick snack for an opportunistic bird.

     Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis) are deep into their moult cycle, and some can look pretty ragged at this time of year.

     For most of the year Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilocus colubris) has been an irregular visitor at best, but that has all changed recently.

     Whenever we sit out on the patio it is mere minutes before a hummingbird appears and recently there have been two individuals that arrive together, with a minimum of squabbling, rare for a species that seems to have pugnacity and aggression built into its DNA.

     We have been wondering whether these are two fledglings from the same nest who are still learning to face the world together and have not yet parted ways.

There is no way we can prove this, and the literature seems to contain nothing to corroborate our supposition, but for whatever reason they seem to get along.

     I am guessing that the bird above, with distinct streaking on the neck with a hint of suffuse red, is a young male.

     The bird below may well be his sister.

     These young birds are probably already entering a hyperphagic state and are laying down extra fat to fuel their imminent migration.

     The perils that these tiny birds, weighing barely more than the dime in your pocket, will face on this peril-laded hegira, defy comprehension. They will need all the skills that are hard-wired in their brain and more than a little luck to make it to their wintering quarters in Mexico and Central America.

     The adult female shown below is resting after drinking her fill from our sugar water feeder.

     If you too have hummingbird feeders in your garden to attract these little gems, please be sure to keep them clean and regularly replace the syrup so that it does not become rancid or get filled with ants seeking the sugary prize and drowning for their efforts.

     There is something about a hummingbird that appeals to everyone. Perhaps it is their size that conveys vulnerability, but gram for gram they are amongst the toughest competitors in the world.

     I could not begin to put a price on the pleasure they have given us and we wish them well on their journey.

     May they return to see us next spring and stay to raise their own young. 

     And let us do all we can to help them. We owe them no less.