The Wonder of Hummingbirds
As most of you might know, my yard is filled with feeders for all kinds of birds but I especially love my little Hummingbirds. I want to share an article by Jill Staake who writes about them. Her article has fascinating facts that made me appreciate them even more than I already do; they are simply amazing!
First of all, Hummingbirds are among the most beautiful and fascinating birds in the world. They truly are the smallest of birds, and yet there are 330 species. Remarkably, they are found nowhere else on the planet except in the Americas. Seventeen species of hummingbirds visit New Mexico each year on their migration trails. The hummingbird is nature’s helicopter. They can fly forward, backward, left, right, hover motionless and even fly upside down. Hummingbirds have extremely short, weak legs and are not able to walk or hop but make up for that with their amazing flight ability.
They have the fastest heart rate (1,260 beats per minute), the fastest wing beat (up to 80 times per second), the fastest metabolism and the largest heart, in proportion to body size, of any bird. A large heart, but a small brain, the smallest of any bird — about the size of a BB. It may be small, but it’s exceptional in that hummingbirds can navigate 2,000 miles to migrate back to the exact same feeder year after year.
Hummingbirds typically return to Santa Fe in late March and early April from their spring migration (23 miles per day) from Mexico. They are “loners” and migrate alone, perfectly timed with the blooming of hummingbird pollinated food plants. They gain up to 40 percent in body weight to meet the physical demands of migration. Hummingbirds have quite the appetite, ingesting up to eight times their body weight in solid and liquid food every day. As for liquid food, their forked, grooved tongues lap up nectar from flowers and feeders at an amazing 12 times a second. As for solid food, they use the flexible tip of their bill to capture insects and insect eggs. They love spiders.
Male hummingbirds tend to be highly territorial and often migrate north in the spring a week or more in advance of females to establish their territories for the season. Males also leave incubation of eggs (one to three) and rearing of young to females and begin moving south on the fall migration at least two weeks before the females and young. The flight south must take place well in advance of the cold weather, not because they cannot tolerate cold (as low as -40 degrees), but because of rapidly diminishing food supplies at that time of the year. Due to the long migration, the female and baby hummingbirds left behind will need to fill up on energy to help them make their arduous journey. Do not take down your hummer feeders until you have not seen a hummingbird visit it for two weeks. The stragglers are usually the weakest and need every bit of help we can offer.
Hummingbirds that encounter cold weather experience “Torpor”. Hummingbirds migrate because they are unable to withstand freezing temperatures for extended periods of time. They have an amazing adaption to help them survive the unexpected, though. If cold weather sets in early, or a belated lingerer faces an unexpected cold spell, hummingbird bodies will essentially shut down all non-essential functions (including breathing for a short time). They drop their body temperatures by up to 50 degrees, and slow their heartbeats to almost nothing. When warmer temperatures return, they “wake up” in about an hour or so and continue their journey. It can be a little alarming to see a hummingbird in torpor, since they often hang upside-down from a tree or even a feeder. Don’t disturb hummingbirds you find exhibiting this behavior; they’ll be just fine once the weather warms up.
A Hummingbird’s fall migration journey takes approximately two weeks. This varies of course depending on weather and other factors. The birds are headed for Mexico and South America, with some species heading as far south as Panama. They are capable of flying at speeds up to 35 miles an hour, and could make the journey in as little as a week, but most stop to rest and all stop to feed along the way. During the fall migration months, you should notice an increased number of visitors at your feeders during warm dry weather, but don’t expect them to linger, they usually spend no more than a day in one area.
A Hummingbird’s flight across the Gulf of Mexico takes 18 – 24 hours. Hummingbirds travel during the day, with the exception of those that must make the perilous Gulf crossing. Once a hummingbird leaves shore, it must continue the journey until it finds dry ground again. That means these birds must fly for at least 18 hours, and sometimes longer if the weather is bad. Folks who live along the northern Gulf Coast can help hummingbirds prepare for arduous journey by providing lots of nectar flowers and sugar water feeders.
