We love to watch the hummingbirds flutter from flower to flower--when they're not busy fighting. There are two species of hummers on Catalina Island -- the red headed Anna’s and the rusty colored Allen’s. Both are tiny – abut 3 ½ inches long. We put up a hummingbird feeder and it took the hummers about 20 minutes to find it. One hummer (a male Anna’s) has now claimed it for his own and guards it with his life. Just to let all other hummers know who's “king of the feeder” he sits on a lower branch where he can see in all directions and loudly makes a chi-chi-chi-chi-chi sound to pronounce his rightful territory. If another hummer comes in – he zings toward it with reckless abandon, sword-like beak at the ready. The hummers sometimes zing alarmingly close to us as if we weren’t there. You instinctivly pull away--Arthur spilled coffee on himself one morning. It’s a good thing hummers are small – if they were as big as ravens, we’d all be in trouble.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Hummingbirds in Paradise
We love to watch the hummingbirds flutter from flower to flower--when they're not busy fighting. There are two species of hummers on Catalina Island -- the red headed Anna’s and the rusty colored Allen’s. Both are tiny – abut 3 ½ inches long. We put up a hummingbird feeder and it took the hummers about 20 minutes to find it. One hummer (a male Anna’s) has now claimed it for his own and guards it with his life. Just to let all other hummers know who's “king of the feeder” he sits on a lower branch where he can see in all directions and loudly makes a chi-chi-chi-chi-chi sound to pronounce his rightful territory. If another hummer comes in – he zings toward it with reckless abandon, sword-like beak at the ready. The hummers sometimes zing alarmingly close to us as if we weren’t there. You instinctivly pull away--Arthur spilled coffee on himself one morning. It’s a good thing hummers are small – if they were as big as ravens, we’d all be in trouble.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment