Birdfeeders

During early spring, there is lots of hummingbird activity around the hummingbird feeders. Males are aggressively trying to keep each other away, there is lots of swooping and diving and swinging-pendulum-like flights. All of this is about courtship. Male hummingbirds have absolutely nothing to do with nesting or caring for their young, but they specialize in fancy courtship displays. Their colorful throat feathers as well as their body feathers have droplets of oil trapped inside of them that actually refract the sun’s light to appear a variety of brilliant colors. After the male impresses the female enough for her to mate with him, they part ways. The female begins nest building by gathering soft plant fluff and spider webs to build a walnut-sized nest. This tiny nest provide a home for her two (occasionally 3) pea-sized eggs. The chicks hatch in 15-22 days and are wonderful to see if you are lucky enough to spot a hummingbird nest. The female then has to work hard to feed the chicks all by herself giving them regurgitated nectar and tiny insects like aphids and gnats. Young hummingbirds may stay in the nest as long as 31 days - much longer than most other birds. It is so wonderful to finally see the young hummingbirds start appearing at our hummingbird feeders!