2011 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds Vol. 1

Your wingscape camera is doing a great job Marna, very clear shot.
Lily I agree a nice shot to show how small they are.
LOL Nanny I think we all have drop chin, when we see Dellrose's hummers Can you imagine seeing that in person!!!
Dellrose, wow, wow, and wowwwwwwwie. So much activity there. Beautiful close up shots.
My laptop is down, and I can't share photos with you.

OMG Rose that is incredible! Great shots!

Rose, that is amazing. You're going to have to add more stories to the multi-layer feeder.

I so miss my hummers from when I loved in Mississippi. Longing for them in the volumes I had there here in Minnesota. I just love them so much. They are so precious. Natures little angels.
On a side noe - I have cardinals nesting in the pine in back - and while pulling those fabulous dandi's last night, I came across a broken cardinal egg in the grass with a mostly formed baby inside. :( must have been snatched by something because it was no where near the pine tree.
I will change my food in the hummer feeders today - see if that will attract more. Only the bleeding hearts are blooming here - I did get some fuschia at Lowe's - hoping that would bring them around. XX fingers crossed!!

Wow great pics & stories everyone!!

My Hummers were a little late this year. The weather has been really wacky!

I have a double shepherd's hook outside my kitchen window. On one hook I have one of my Hummer feeders & on the other, the same kind of Oriole feeder that minnesippi has.

Most of the Orioles couldn't figure out how to use the feeder (push in the "button" to get to the food. . .which keeps out bugs), so I removed the "buttons". Now both the Orioles & Hummers use it.

With those big holes, the Hummers probably feel like they're drinking out of a bathtub!

I haven't had any luck getting pictures, but I'll keep trying. My camera doesn't have much of a zoom on it, but it will have to do for now. Our new heating & air conditioning system took a big bite out of the finances.

Best of lucks nutsaboutnature. I've added more nectaring blooming plants to the garden. They do visit on a regular basic these days. But the greatest number...still happens at my neighbors' back deck. I'm pretty happy though when I catch one in my garden.

I've also added more nectar plants this year, Lily_love. Some are blooming now, but more will bloom later on. I haven't noticed a lot of Hummer activity around the blooms, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been any.

We have one or two dominant males that chase away the females & other males if they see them, but it tends to get a little better later in the season when there are more blooms & insects available.

I've also had a lot of luck with Annual Salvias, particularly the Blue & Red varieties, so I'm still planning to add some of those. They bloom for the whole season once they start & I tend to see the Hummers zipping around through them often.

No really good pics yet....they are still just coming in real fast & leaving right away. So only If I see them and can grab the camera fast enough do I get a photo! lol

This message was edited May 30, 2011 4:59 PM

Great pictures everyone. Rose love that photo with all the hummers-wow, that's going to take a bunch of sugar!

great pix. I haven't seen one in over a week.

STILL haven't seen any. I think those tornadoes blew 'em all Rose's way! So ok, Rose - any affordable real estate in yer neck of the woods? Maybe something I could rent for, say, April-Oct.? Like a room at your place?

This message was edited May 31, 2011 8:52 AM

Tehehehehe, lol with you Carol from Glen Burnie. I may need to line up behind you for a chance to vacation at Rose's place.

Great shots Lily and Nanny.

I witnessed a tragic incident between 2 male hummers. One gave chase to the other, and the poor thing, in a hast to get away, flew in the window. It manage to fly to a branch in the tree, but could not hold on and fell to the ground. The other went after it, and stood on top of him trying to finish him off. I went down the deck to try to rescue it. Even with me being there, the other one tried to hold it down. I had to shew him off a couple of times, before I could picked him up. It live for part of the afternoon. It tried to fly on a branch I had set up low, in the cage, but just couldn't make it.When I tried to get him on it, he tipped over and fell to the bottom. I manage to give him a few sip of sugar water through a syringe. He stayed in the bottom of the cage in a daze. But it was to bad off, and died later on, in the afternoon.

I have a lot of hummers this year, we're being buzzed all the time.

A favorite spot to perch.

Showing of his red throat.

A female on the branch above me.

Two females on the same feeder, a rare shot for me.

That is so sad about the male....I know the first year here we lost a couple of them because they flew into the garage door.

Your photos a great...really like the last one!

Thanks Nanny.

Great photos Burn. So sorry to hear about your hummer incident. You did your best and I'm sorry it wasn't enough.

It's sad when we witness such loss. I too lost a male back in early spring, I sorta blamed on myself for not having done enough. In fact I took down the very same feeder that I found many a downy feather after the bird died. Thinking, it was my fault that he hurt himself on the jagged edge feeder. I'm still debating whether I should throw out that very feeder.

Female Ruby-throated

I noticed my sugar water was disappearing, but really was not seeing any Hummingbirds....but this morning I did happen to look out in time to spot one. Some of my shrubs they liked have started opening their first blooms after being frozen back,so they will have more food sources.

Wow Dellrose and they are all getting along. I've seen 2 females and they are chasing each other away from the feeder.

great flight shot Met, love how you've captured the wings.

On the same evenings as the other ones, caught this one preening.

The female doesn't like the sound of the zoom focusing.

Very nice preening shot burn!

Met and Burn-great photos of your hummers!

Might be time for a new thread maybe.....I will start one and be right back!

New thread is here http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1187473/

Great pics everyone!

This message was edited Jun 5, 2011 3:08 PM