After reading Linda Monohan's Fish Springs Flier column about the hummingbirds in her yard, I started noticing the arguments at our feeder. I'm sure the bully from Linda's yard has been flying back and forth between our two areas. Always looking for ways to make everyone happy (including our feathered friends), I decided to add another multi-access feeder so more than one hummingbird could feed at a time. After a couple of days, though, they did settle down and worked out a sort of shared feeding schedule.
I believe some went to Hot August Nights and ramped up their engines with turbo-chargers and loud muffler systems because now they sound like mini hot rods, or mini-jets, vroom-vrooming around the feeders. It is nice, though, because I rarely miss their antics if I'm in the room. Sometimes they spread their tail feathers just before pausing for a drink. I can almost hear them say "flaps down, prepare for landing."
While I'm writing this column, one has landed on the feeder and is perched there with her beak buried to her nostrils. Several others have come and gone but she is still drinking. She eventually stands on the edge and rests her wings for a split second. They are really small. I wonder if this one is a baby.
We have our windows tinted to keep out the ultra-violet rays and as extra insulation which means on the street side they look like mirrors. You can always tell the male hummers from the female hummers because the males will pick a fight with their reflection while the female will observe her reflection from all angles and all possible lighting to see if her butt looks big and her feathers are in just the right place.
Another way to determine the sex of these little ones is when I bring out the camera. The tint allows us to get right next to the window without being seen but the females know exactly when we bring out the camera and they scatter. Occasionally one will stay a bit longer and I'm convinced he's the one saying "keep that camera handy so I can get in here once in a while for a drink."
Our cats have been quite intrigued with these little jet bombers and can be seen bobbing their heads back and forth to follow the hummers as they hover by the lilac tree. When the larger birds come to the seed feeder, the cats try to catch them through the screen; but they seem to know that it's no use trying to catch these speedy little fliers.
Have a ramblin' good week.
Reach Gail Davis at RuhenstrothRamblings@yahoo.com or 265-1947.
