Rufous-breasted hermit (Glaucis hirsutus), Arima Valley, Trinidad
A widespread species in the north of the South American continent.
Surely the greatest fascination that the Neotropical bird world offers is that of the hummingbird. Wingbeats of up to 80 times a second, the ability to hover and to fly backwards. Iridescent plumage which, due to the prismatic quality of the feathers, may look a completely different colour from a different angle. The highest metabolic rate of any warm-blooded creature, requiring it to sink into a state of torpor overnight when it cannot get its sugar-rich food. (Is it any wonder hummingbirds come so readily to sugar-water feeders?)
The rufous-breasted hermit is one of the larger hummingbirds at 13cm long. Photographically, the aim should be to have a shutter speed fast enough to stop the movement of the bird's body, yet slow enough to leave some appropriate blur in the wings.
180114 276-2
Despite the information elsewhere on this page, this shot was taken with a 150-500 mm lens at 320mm
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All images are the property of the photographer and may not be reproduced, copied, downloaded, transmitted or used in any way without the written permission of the photographer, who can be contacted by registering with flickr and using flickrmail.
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Rufous-breasted hermit (Glaucis hirsutus), Arima Valley, Trinidad
A widespread species in the north of the South American continent.
Surely the greatest fascination that the Neotropical bird world offers is that of the hummingbird. Wingbeats of up to 80 times a second, the ability to hover and to fly backwards. Iridescent plumage which, due to the prismatic quality of the feathers, may look a completely different colour from a different angle. The highest metabolic rate of any warm-blooded creature, requiring it to sink into a state of torpor overnight when it cannot get its sugar-rich food. (Is it any wonder hummingbirds come so readily to sugar-water feeders?)
The rufous-breasted hermit is one of the larger hummingbirds at 13cm long. Photographically, the aim should be to have a shutter speed fast enough to stop the movement of the bird's body, yet slow enough to leave some appropriate blur in the wings.
180114 276-2
Despite the information elsewhere on this page, this shot was taken with a 150-500 mm lens at 320mm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All images are the property of the photographer and may not be reproduced, copied, downloaded, transmitted or used in any way without the written permission of the photographer, who can be contacted by registering with flickr and using flickrmail.
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