bird

Hummingbirds feed on the nectar of plants and are important pollinators, especially of deep-throated, tubular flowers.
Like bees, they are able to assess the amount of sugar in the nectar they eat; they reject flower types that produce nectar
which is less than 12% sugar and prefer those whose sugar content is around 25%. Nectar is a poor source of nutrients, so
hummingbirds meet their needs for protein, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, etc. by preying on insects and spiders,
especially when feeding young.

Most hummingbirds have bills that are long and straight or nearly so, but in some species the bill shape is adapted for
specialized feeding. Thornbills have short, sharp bills adapted for feeding from flowers with short corollas and piercing
the bases of longer ones. The Sicklebills' extremely decurved bills are adapted to extracting nectar from the curved
corollas of flowers in the family Gesneriaceae. The bill of the Fiery-tailed Awlbill has an upturned tip, as in the Avocets.
The male Tooth-billed Hummingbird has barracuda-like spikes at the tip of its long, straight bill.

The two halves of a hummingbird's bill have a pronounced overlap, with the lower half (mandible) fitting tightly inside
the upper half (maxilla). When hummingbirds feed on nectar, the bill is usually only opened slightly, allowing the tongue
to dart out and into the interior of flowers.

Hummingbirds do not spend all day flying, as the energy costs of this would be prohibitive. In fact, they spend most of
their lives sitting, perching and watching the world. Hummingbirds feed in many small meals, consuming up to their own
body weight in nectar and insects per day. They spend an average 10%-15% of their time feeding and 75%-80% sitting,
digesting and watching. Obtaining this much food requires a lot of work. Scientists have recorded a Costa's Hummingbirds
making 42 feeding flights in 6-5 hours, during which time it visited 1,311 flowers.

Hummingbirds are part of the Trochilidae family found only in the Americas. They are unknown in the Eastern Hemisphere.
With 343 species, hummingbirds make up the Western Hemisphere's second largest family of birds. The most astonishing
quality of hummingbirds is their ability to broadcast color. Hummingbirds radiate like hot coals in the sun. The color that
reaches your eye is created by pigment, which absorbs some colors and rejects others. Like soap bubbles, hummingbird's
color comes from iridescence, not pigment. It winks on and off, depending on the light source and the angle of the viewer.
This allows hummingbirds to flash colors or hide them which is useful for males who want to impress females or threaten
other males.

Hummingbirds are built for power and dazzle, hummingbirds are little more than flight muscles covered with feathers. 30% of
a hummingbird's weight consists of flight muscles. Hummingbirds require lots of energy. They have the fastest wing beats of
any bird and their hearts beat up to 1,260 beats per minute. A Hummingbird's flight speed can average 25-30 mph, and can
dive up to 60 mph.

In their non stop quest for fuel, Hummingbirds may visit 1,000 flower per day. For protein, hummingbirds eat spiders and strain
gnats from mid-air. They will pull insects out of spiderwebs including the spider itself. Sapsucker holes are a double treat,
netting both insects and sap!

The hummingbird's tiny brain, 4.2% of its body weight, is proportionately the largest in the bird kingdom.
Hummingbirds feed through a long, tube-like tongue that darts into the flower's corolla for nectar. The tongue, shaped like a
"W", uses capillary action to absorb the nectar much like a paper towel absorbs water. The tongue's brushy tip also traps
insects on their own quest for nectar.

Many species that migrate to the U.S. travel impressive distances. Many ruby-throats make a 2,000 mile journey between
Canada and Panama. The trip includes a non-stop, 500 mile flight over the Gulf of Mexico.

Hummingbirds are very territorial and will aggressively protect nectar sources especially
when migrating. It is important to have several feeders, out of sight of each other, to prevent one hummingbird from
dominating your feeders.

Hummingbirds have a unique way of keeping warm or conserving their energy - at night, or any time they cannot get enough
food to fuel themselves - they go into torpor - a state in which their metabolic rate is only one-fifteenth that of normal sleep.
A hummingbird can rotate each of its wings in a circle, allowing them to be the only bird which can fly forwards, backwards,
up, down, sideways or sit in sheer space. To hover, hummingbirds move their wings forward and backward in a repeated
figure eight, much like the arms of a swimmer treading water. Hummingbirds can move instantaneously in any direction, start
from its perch at full speed, and doesn't necessarily slow up to land. Hummingbirds can even fly short distances upside down,
a trick rollover they employ when being attacked by another bird. Hummingbirds have weak feet and are more at ease using
their wings even to shift in the nest or on a perch.

Hummingbirds do not mate for life - the female raises the young on her own. The male hummingbird is not involved with
raising the young. The female does all the work of raising her young alone! Females will lay a clutch of only two white eggs
and will produce only one brood per season. The hatchlings will remain in the nest for three weeks.

Hummingbirds can live a decade or more in the wild.

Hummingbirds do not make good songbirds. Most of them manage no more than a few mouse-like chirps, squeaks and
twitters, though they deliver them dramatically with quick turns of the head.

Hummingbirds do make distinctive "zinging" noises with their wings.

The Spanish names for Hummingbirds are very descriptive of their behavior:

Chupaflor - which means flower-sucker

Picaflor - which means flower nibbler

As well as the more romantic Portuguese Beija-flor or Flower-kisser.

Plants that depend on the hummingbird for pollination do all they can to please. Their blossoms project into the open, where
the bird won't get caught in foliage. Their trumpet shapes accommodate the long bills. Their long tubes, lacking perches at the
lip, also discourage bees, butterflies and other non-pollinating insects. Hummingbirds have no ability to smell, therefore these
flowers do not need to be scented.

Q: How can I attract hummingbirds to my yard?

You can attract hummingbirds by planting red flowers and putting up a hummingbird feeder. You can tie some red
ribbons to the pole where the feeder hangs. Use a four-part water to one-part sugar solution to fill the feeder. You
need not add any color or vitamins to the nectar solution. Hummingbirds can also be attracted to a reliable water
source such as a mister or dripper.

Q: What more can I do to attract hummingbirds?

I know they are here, but they don’t come to my feeder.

During nesting time hummingbirds may not be as likely to come to feeders. They are feeding insects to their
young. Once the young have left the nest and during the fall migration you will probably noticed increased activity
at your feeder.

Q: Where are the hummingbirds?

During nesting season the females are probably busy nesting. Once the babies have hatched, the hummingbirds
are gathering a lot of insects to feed their babies, so they probably aren’t spending a lot of time at the feeder.

Q: Will I keep the hummingbirds here if I feed them into the fall?

Remember, it is not necessary to take down feeders to force the birds to fly south. They will migrate. If
hummingbirds are sticking around, it could be because they are sick or injured. Some experts recommend leaving
the feeder up with a spot light (150 watt bulb) on the feeder to keep the nectar from freezing). Amazingly enough
some hummingbirds are still able to find insect larvae in the bark of trees. It is not necessary to ‘fly’ the birds
south. Nature is nature and is never a guarantee that all birds will survive.

Q: What do I put in the hummingbird feeder?

Four parts water to one part sugar. Use only table sugar and never honey or artificial sugars.

Q: How often do I clean my feeder?

Clean your feeder every three to four days. Use only warm or hot water and a soft brush to clean the feeder.

Q: What can I do to keep ants off my feeder?

An ant trap can be purchased. Ant traps are designed to keep ants that crawl up a pole onto the feeder from
actually entering the feeder. The ant traps do not necessarily work if ants are jumping from trees onto the feeder.

Q: Can I put Vaseline on the feeder to keep ants and bees from landing on the feeder?

It is not suggested that Vaseline be used because it is too likely that the greasy substance could get onto the birds
and make it hard for the birds to clean their feathers properly.

Q: How do hummingbirds eat?

Hummingbirds are very small birds and they have a high metabolism. A great deal of energy is spent flying, so
they must feed almost constantly. Hummingbirds can consume up to 50% of their weight in sugar (nectar solution)
each day. They usually feed on nectar and insects. Hummingbirds actually lap up the nectar with their tongues. A
lot of people think hummingbirds’ tongues are hollow, like a straw. Their tongues do have grooves on the sides
that collect nectar, and when the bill constricts, the hummingbirds can swallow the nectar from flowers and
feeders.

Q: Do hummingbirds perch?

Hummingbirds are able to perch and will do so at feeders regularly. Because they fly so much, they have poorly
developed feet. They can barely walk at all. The hummingbird is much more comfortable in flight.