"Late Arriving, Cold, and Lonely Hummer." Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) *Lifer - A Series
Early this week, I had not observed any Ruby-throated hummers, so I cleaned all the feeders in preparation to store for the winter. However, I left four of their "fav's" up, just in case there might be stragglers.
On Thursday, two zipped by me while I was working in the garden. Yesterday, October 3rd, I saw only one, which looked tattered, wet, and, seemed to be shivering from the cold.
Today I spotted it again sitting on a yucca plant right next to the feeder just before dark. This series shows how weak it is. It tried to feed but could barely support itself as it tried to get its tongue into the feeding port. It finally managed to get a sip, then took off to a tree in the front of my home where I normally see other hummers fly into for shelter. I fear that it will not survive the night but will post again if I see it tomorrow.
The photos are very grainy due to the late hour, but I thought they were worth posting for those interested in the behavior of these little birds.
At the time the photos were taken on October 4, 2014, I wasn't sure about the species. I have submitted 30 photos to Cornell University's bird spotting program for I.D. confirmation.
*Update, it was confirmed!
This series of hummingbird photos were confirmed as a Rufous by Cornell Lab of Ornithology! (See below)
Hi Debra,
Looks good for a Rufous to me—very exciting!!
Have you thought about entering the sighting at eBird? eBird is an up-to-the-minute database of bird sightings from all around the world. Users submit checklists of sightings, along with a time and location, and these data are combined to give us an ever-improving window on to what birds are where, and when. You can also use eBird to create maps of species occurrence, charts of the species in your area, or to find birding “hotspots” near you.
Getting started with eBird is easy, and it’s free! See help.ebird.org/ for help getting going.
If you are interested in where else that species might have been sighted near you, go to the “maps” link above, and enter Rufous Hummingbird in the species field.
Best,
Marc
Marc Devokaitis
Public Information Specialist
Coordinator, Adelson Library
Coordinator, Spring Field Ornithology
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Rd
Ithaca, NY 14850
"Late Arriving, Cold, and Lonely Hummer." Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) *Lifer - A Series
Early this week, I had not observed any Ruby-throated hummers, so I cleaned all the feeders in preparation to store for the winter. However, I left four of their "fav's" up, just in case there might be stragglers.
On Thursday, two zipped by me while I was working in the garden. Yesterday, October 3rd, I saw only one, which looked tattered, wet, and, seemed to be shivering from the cold.
Today I spotted it again sitting on a yucca plant right next to the feeder just before dark. This series shows how weak it is. It tried to feed but could barely support itself as it tried to get its tongue into the feeding port. It finally managed to get a sip, then took off to a tree in the front of my home where I normally see other hummers fly into for shelter. I fear that it will not survive the night but will post again if I see it tomorrow.
The photos are very grainy due to the late hour, but I thought they were worth posting for those interested in the behavior of these little birds.
At the time the photos were taken on October 4, 2014, I wasn't sure about the species. I have submitted 30 photos to Cornell University's bird spotting program for I.D. confirmation.
*Update, it was confirmed!
This series of hummingbird photos were confirmed as a Rufous by Cornell Lab of Ornithology! (See below)
Hi Debra,
Looks good for a Rufous to me—very exciting!!
Have you thought about entering the sighting at eBird? eBird is an up-to-the-minute database of bird sightings from all around the world. Users submit checklists of sightings, along with a time and location, and these data are combined to give us an ever-improving window on to what birds are where, and when. You can also use eBird to create maps of species occurrence, charts of the species in your area, or to find birding “hotspots” near you.
Getting started with eBird is easy, and it’s free! See help.ebird.org/ for help getting going.
If you are interested in where else that species might have been sighted near you, go to the “maps” link above, and enter Rufous Hummingbird in the species field.
Best,
Marc
Marc Devokaitis
Public Information Specialist
Coordinator, Adelson Library
Coordinator, Spring Field Ornithology
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Rd
Ithaca, NY 14850