Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for September 25, 2016

ah, one hummingbird kicked the other ones butt. Territorial little critters, they are!

Not enough feeding tubes for them. That honey water is critical.

Humans are animals too – so human nature, is natural. Question just remains how we got to rely so much on our brains.

In all the bird books, hummingbirds are described as “pugnacious”….I’ve watched ’em…They bust each others chops….They dive bomb at each other at high speed…..Vicious little guys, really….I feed them anyway….

My humming birds said good bye last week, and they headed south, so sad. I already miss them.

Took the feeder down just yesterday. Hadn’’t seen any for a week or more here in northern Maine.

“Mine.”

Seen a hummer try to guard more than one feeder. I thought the little guy was going to fly himself into the ground.

Just like the debate coming up….

Very good point about “human nature”.

“Nature red in tooth and claw.” Survival of the fittest. Humans are no exception, although we have the potential to maximize human good through cooperation and empathy as survival strategies.

We’re not above the laws of Nature, though.

One year during a drought we had several hundred hummers that came to our feeders. We had four one quart feeders out and had to fill them two or three times a day. We were in one particular hummer’s territory and he tried to guard all four of them against several hundred interlopers. They would wake us up at dawn outside the window chirping and buzzing wanting to be fed. We called them “hummer-copters.”

Around here it’s the Rufus’ that are over protective of the feeders. The Ruby Throats seem to get along and share quite well.

We have 3 one quart feeders out and fill them everyday.

I once heard a hummingbird expert say that if the birds were the size of blue jays we’d never be able to leave our homes

We added a feeder this year so now we have 2. Next year we’ll add 2. The new one is attached to the kitchen window it is fun to watch them up close. We still have a few that come around of the dozen that were about after the young were out of the nest.

This time of year in the PNW the Rufus Hummingbirds go south and the Anna Hummingbirds come in from the coast. I have my feeders up year round. When we get a real cold spell I bring them in at night, set my alarm and put them back out before it gets light. Don’t ever use honey to make the nectar, just water and sugar.

1/17th of an ounce of feathered fury!!

Probably another couple weeks in E. TN. till they are gone.

My hummers suck up the Oriel feeder and then go to the hummer feeder….. I’m thinking about just putting out oriel feeders