i hung a screen over the door to my studio yesterday. Hummingbirds are attracted to the color red and i have a red fire extingusher right inside the door. I''ve had to catch and release a number of hummers before i put my screen up. Haven't seen any yet but got frog eggs in the pond and the other birds are pairing up.
When I first read your post I Thought it said "catch and release a number of humans" and it actually made sense. More coffee please.
From ice and freezing to 70 degrees in the blink of an eye. I find myself also anticipating the little critters and have added 2 more feeders. Have already seen a bunch of Cardinals genuflecting on the seed hill.
Ran across a video that contains some interesting shots of hummers along with a bunch of other types of pollinators. Just thought it was kinda interesting:
Bob, I imagine they must be well established by now in your neck of Tennessee?
I've got three feeders up, a bunch of red tulips blooming and I planted a bunch of red salvia but I haven't had any evidence that they're lurking around my neighborhood. All of perennial h'bird flowers are a month behind schedule growthwise due to the snow cover. I hope the little buggers won't forget the good times they had in my little patch of h'bird heaven last year.
This is the third little guy that was fighting with another bird and then flew into our glass panels on the deck. He sat in my hand for 5 minutes before he flew off. He might have a concussion though
Great pict Shizz. Seems like around these mts. the males arrive first. The little guys have been here about a week, we have two feeders out and being used.
Bob, I imagine they must be well established by now in your neck of Tennessee?
I've got three feeders up, a bunch of red tulips blooming and I planted a bunch of red salvia but I haven't had any evidence that they're lurking around my neighborhood. All of perennial h'bird flowers are a month behind schedule growthwise due to the snow cover. I hope the little buggers won't forget the good times they had in my little patch of h'bird heaven last year.
I haven't seen any but there's a reason for that. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it but, I haven't started feeding them yet. I don't feel like they are expecting anything from me yet because last year I hadn't moved in to this house until July and didn't get my feeders set up until sometime in August. Soon though, I'll set out a couple of small feeders and a few weeks later I plan to set out a couple more. Then come mid August I'll start setting a full buffet again for the migration. Then,... it's ON! It'll be a full blown parTAY!.
This is the third little guy that was fighting with another bird and then flew into our glass panels on the deck. He sat in my hand for 5 minutes before he flew off. He might have a concussion though
Great pic Jim! You guys in the northwest have a whole bunch of different types in your area. We pretty much see ONLY ruby-throated ones in the eastern US. Do you know which type you had there in your hand?
This is the third little guy that was fighting with another bird and then flew into our glass panels on the deck. He sat in my hand for 5 minutes before he flew off. He might have a concussion though
Wow, incredible pix! Not that I'd ever want one to fly into my window, but it would be so cool if one just wanted to land on my hand voluntarily....
It's that time of year, they'll be moving through.
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Yeah, I didn't get any until around the second week of July because our endless blizzardasaurus winter delayed the hummingbird flowers from sprouting by more than a month. I've had about 12 different varieties of flowers out there since the spring but didn't get a single visit until the bee balm started blooming.
It would seem to me, so far, there are less birds this year. I have not heard from the experts as to why. I'm looking forward to the next couple of months to see if they migrate and congregate at my feeders in similar numbers as they did last year.
Well, this year I put out my feeders pretty late in the season (about a week and a half ago). Plenty of birds started coming at first but soon I was seeing plenty more in the same large numbers as usual for August. But, yesterday I discovered my feeders are crawling with mites. At first, I thought they were chiggers but now, 24 hours later, I'm 95% positive they are a type of bird mite. I have done quite a bit of googling in the last 24 hours and I'm concerned. Plus, every little itch I get makes me wonder if I have them on me. Yest they did crawl onto my hands as I was checking them out with a magnifying glass. I picked them off and squashed them and, they didn't die easily either. I washed myself down with alcohol up to my shoulders when it happened but I'm wondering if any survived. Probably some did. Danggit!
Also wondering how many I brought inside the house in the days before I even noticed them because I bring the feeders in and clean them in the kitchen sink. I hang about six feeders and I have two feeders for every location so I swap them out for cleaning every few days. Danggit!
I've read up on home infestations and they usually occur when baby birds (of any type) become flying adults and leave an infested nest that is attached to the house (most likely in the eaves of the house). Then, without a host to feed on, the hungry mites start looking for another victim and invade further into the home. This is not exactly the same scenario with me so maybe I'll be fine but, Danggit!
No obvious bites as of yet but just worrisome itches. Probably normal. Probably no more itching than usual but I'm "bugged" by any and every itch I get SO much more than before. Danggit! This sucks!
Anybody else seen these critters on your feeders?
They are tiny so you might not see them unless you REALLY look hard. Very small. Smaller than a grain of sand. I saw one post (dated earlier this month) on a hummingbird forum detailing a similar situation specifically describing them on hummingbird feeders.
Hey, @Bob_Luken, maybe the ol' cure for crabs (crotch-crickets) might work for ya. Just mix some sand and bourbon together and spread It around on the feeders.
Then the little buggers will get drunk and stone one another to death. (yuk, yuk).
Yowsa! My hummingbirds only go for the flowers, almost never for the feeders and I clean them outside. But now I'm getting all paranoid and am going to have to give them a closer look.
@Bob_Luken They're here but not quite in full force yet, had 10 or more last year, got the feeders out as well. Got to be careful on the deck as the bully Ruby Throat male chases off the others, two just about took off my head yesterday. I hope the fat neon yellow one migrates through this year, a bird watcher at the Kleb Woods Nature Preserve down the road said it was a rare one, said they get some strange unknown rare ones at the preserve every now and then. Damn thing is very territorial runs even the dominant male Rudy Throat off and hogs all the nectar for its self
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@TX98Z28 said: @Bob_Luken They're here but not quite in full force yet, had 10 or more last year, got the feeders out as well. Got to be careful on the deck as the bully Ruby Throat male chases off the others, two just about took off my head yesterday. I hope the fat neon yellow one migrates through this year, a bird watcher at the Kleb Woods Nature Preserve down the road said it was a rare one, said they get some strange unknown rare ones at the preserve every now and then. Damn thing is very territorial runs even the dominant male Rudy Throat off and hogs all the nectar for its self
That's very interesting. Did the bird watcher have a name for the yellow one? Can you get a picture?
@TX98Z28 said: @Bob_Luken They're here but not quite in full force yet, had 10 or more last year, got the feeders out as well. Got to be careful on the deck as the bully Ruby Throat male chases off the others, two just about took off my head yesterday. I hope the fat neon yellow one migrates through this year, a bird watcher at the Kleb Woods Nature Preserve down the road said it was a rare one, said they get some strange unknown rare ones at the preserve every now and then. Damn thing is very territorial runs even the dominant male Rudy Throat off and hogs all the nectar for its self
That's very interesting. Did the bird watcher have a name for the yellow one? Can you get a picture?
No he couldn’t confirm even with the pictures I took (hard to get good pictures, so small and distance from where it would perch) gonna take me sometime to find the pics but them in my photos somewhere. The hummingbird did have a curved beak and was a neonish yellow/green color depending on the lighting. Digging for the pictures now.
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Well I can’t find the pictures after looking through thousands, in fact over a hundred or more are missing, don’t know what the hell is wrong with my iCloud or phone or why they have vanished but if I can find a picture of the bird I should be able to identify it, I’ve got a good visual memory. It had medium length curved beak, was fat and more rounded, flew slower than most other hummingbirds and had a very distinctive neon yellow/green color to it, yellow being more dominant, it was aggressive and territorial assuming a male but not positive. Here are two pictures of the Ruby Throat male I just took today though.
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@TX98Z28 Could this have been the rare hummingbird you saw?
Green Breasted Mango
Avid birdwatchers have been "flocking" to south TX to catch a glimpse of this rare hummingbird that isn't even supposed to be in the US. https://youtu.be/AOE1IxdHyrA
@Bob_Luken The second picture is very close but some colors don't look right. The neon yellow color is really close if not the same but the bird I saw is missing the purple tail feathers or I perceived them as another color (so hard to tell without high power binoculars), also had no turquoise/blue around its neck 95% positive on that, beak is very close if not exact. The bird was way more plump, flew slower then others and was VERY territorial and aggressive towards the Ruby Throats, would run off any other hummingbirds coming for nectar. It is possible this is the hummingbird but it just looks off in the area specified above.
Can two different species of hummingbirds breed to produce a new species?
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Comments
When I first read your post I Thought it said "catch and release a number of humans" and it actually made sense. More coffee please.
From ice and freezing to 70 degrees in the blink of an eye. I find myself also anticipating the little critters and have added 2 more feeders. Have already seen a bunch of Cardinals genuflecting on the seed hill.
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Bob, I imagine they must be well established by now in your neck of Tennessee?
I've got three feeders up, a bunch of red tulips blooming and I planted a bunch of red salvia but I haven't had any evidence that they're lurking around my neighborhood. All of perennial h'bird flowers are a month behind schedule growthwise due to the snow cover. I hope the little buggers won't forget the good times they had in my little patch of h'bird heaven last year.
I like Oliva and Quesada (including Regius) a lot. I will smoke anything, though.
Wow, incredible pix! Not that I'd ever want one to fly into my window, but it would be so cool if one just wanted to land on my hand voluntarily....
"I'm at the point in my life where if it doesn't taste good,I'm not putting it in my mouth"
"If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed. If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." -- Mark Twain
Bird Mites!
Well, this year I put out my feeders pretty late in the season (about a week and a half ago). Plenty of birds started coming at first but soon I was seeing plenty more in the same large numbers as usual for August. But, yesterday I discovered my feeders are crawling with mites. At first, I thought they were chiggers but now, 24 hours later, I'm 95% positive they are a type of bird mite. I have done quite a bit of googling in the last 24 hours and I'm concerned. Plus, every little itch I get makes me wonder if I have them on me. Yest they did crawl onto my hands as I was checking them out with a magnifying glass. I picked them off and squashed them and, they didn't die easily either. I washed myself down with alcohol up to my shoulders when it happened but I'm wondering if any survived. Probably some did. Danggit!
Also wondering how many I brought inside the house in the days before I even noticed them because I bring the feeders in and clean them in the kitchen sink. I hang about six feeders and I have two feeders for every location so I swap them out for cleaning every few days. Danggit!
I've read up on home infestations and they usually occur when baby birds (of any type) become flying adults and leave an infested nest that is attached to the house (most likely in the eaves of the house). Then, without a host to feed on, the hungry mites start looking for another victim and invade further into the home. This is not exactly the same scenario with me so maybe I'll be fine but, Danggit!
No obvious bites as of yet but just worrisome itches. Probably normal. Probably no more itching than usual but I'm "bugged" by any and every itch I get SO much more than before. Danggit! This sucks!
Anybody else seen these critters on your feeders?
They are tiny so you might not see them unless you REALLY look hard. Very small. Smaller than a grain of sand. I saw one post (dated earlier this month) on a hummingbird forum detailing a similar situation specifically describing them on hummingbird feeders.
Brett
Then the little buggers will get drunk and stone one another to death. (yuk, yuk).
I came across these pics from Sept '18 and thought I'd share.
@Bob_Luken They're here but not quite in full force yet, had 10 or more last year, got the feeders out as well. Got to be careful on the deck as the bully Ruby Throat male chases off the others, two just about took off my head yesterday. I hope the fat neon yellow one migrates through this year, a bird watcher at the Kleb Woods Nature Preserve down the road said it was a rare one, said they get some strange unknown rare ones at the preserve every now and then. Damn thing is very territorial runs even the dominant male Rudy Throat off and hogs all the nectar for its self
That's very interesting. Did the bird watcher have a name for the yellow one? Can you get a picture?
No he couldn’t confirm even with the pictures I took (hard to get good pictures, so small and distance from where it would perch) gonna take me sometime to find the pics but them in my photos somewhere. The hummingbird did have a curved beak and was a neonish yellow/green color depending on the lighting. Digging for the pictures now.
matbe a broadbilled?
audubon.org/field-guide/bird/broad-billed-hummingbird
Well I can’t find the pictures after looking through thousands, in fact over a hundred or more are missing, don’t know what the hell is wrong with my iCloud or phone or why they have vanished
but if I can find a picture of the bird I should be able to identify it, I’ve got a good visual memory. It had medium length curved beak, was fat and more rounded, flew slower than most other hummingbirds and had a very distinctive neon yellow/green color to it, yellow being more dominant, it was aggressive and territorial assuming a male but not positive. Here are two pictures of the Ruby Throat male I just took today though.
There are no leaves on the trees yet in the NC mountains but I saw a hummingbird yesterday. We will hang two feeders tomorrow.
Your yard looks excellent. Should be a great season for your hummingbirds.
@Bob_Luken Thanks for the compliment. The plants on the deck need some serious consolidating and rearranging, don't think the birds mind though.
@TX98Z28 Could this have been the rare hummingbird you saw?
Green Breasted Mango
Avid birdwatchers have been "flocking" to south TX to catch a glimpse of this rare hummingbird that isn't even supposed to be in the US.
https://youtu.be/AOE1IxdHyrA
@Bob_Luken The second picture is very close but some colors don't look right. The neon yellow color is really close if not the same but the bird I saw is missing the purple tail feathers or I perceived them as another color (so hard to tell without high power binoculars), also had no turquoise/blue around its neck 95% positive on that, beak is very close if not exact. The bird was way more plump, flew slower then others and was VERY territorial and aggressive towards the Ruby Throats, would run off any other hummingbirds coming for nectar. It is possible this is the hummingbird but it just looks off in the area specified above.
Can two different species of hummingbirds breed to produce a new species?