Hummingbird Rescue

Such a busy, birdy time of year! I had to do a hummingbird rescue yesterday afternoon too. I was going to the house to get my camera to take pictures of the bluebird babies when I noticed the body of a poor little hummingbird laying on the back patio. I knew it must have hit the dining room window above. The poor little squirt was conscious, but obviously disoriented (as you can see by the tip of his little tongue sticking out the end of his beak). I carefully picked him up and gave him to Mr. Johnson to hold for a few seconds while I ran to fetch one of the nectar feeders and a box to put him in.
I took him carefully from Mr. Johnson and held him while I dipped his beak into the nectar, hoping he'd take a little sip and that would help to energize him.

Then it was back into Mr. Johnson's hand for a few more seconds while I lined the carboard box with a towel and placed the little hummingbird inside.

After that I just closed the lid and left him in the basement. Hopefully a few minutes in the dark and calm environment would revive him. And sure enough, it did. After less than 10 minutes, Mr. Johnson reported that there was some angry buzzing and bumps coming from inside the box. We took the box outside and carefully opened the lid........out buzzed this little hummingbird straight into the sky and apparently completely recovered from his window collision. YAY!! Another birdy saved!

They're such neat little birds and I'm so thankful that we came upon this little hummer at just the right time and were able to save his life. I'm also glad he didn't have any serious injuries that would have prevented him from being released again.

Colorful Summer Birds

Even though it doesn't feel like spring here in Minnesota (I'm wearing a wool sweater this afternoon and the furnace is still running!), the summer birds are arriving in the backyard, and pretty much on schedule with previous years' arrivals. Last Wednesday, I was happy to see my first hummingbird show up at the nectar feeders. It was a cloudy day, so this ruby-throated hummingbird looks more like a black-chinned hummingbird.


I spotted the first Rose-Breasted Grosbeak last Friday, the 7th. Today while I was eating my lunch, Mrs. Grosbeak also showed up to dine on safflower seeds. Aren't they a handsome couple?

Here's a series of pictures I took of Mrs. Grosbeak all by herself in the crabapple tree outside the dining room window. I love this shot!

She posed so nicely for this profile shot too!

Then she noticed something a little ways up the branch......

......and stretched up to bite off a little crabapple!

Perched in the tree beyond Mrs. Grosbeak was another male Rose-Breasted Grosbeak (yellow arrow is pointing at him). The first male still at the feeder wasn't very tolerant of this other guy hanging around.

Baltimore Orioles also arrived late last week. He doesn't seem to have any problems getting nectar from this hummingbird feeder.

And this afternoon, I was thrilled to spot the first Indigo Bunting in the backyard. These pictures are a little blurry, but there's really no mistaking the brilliant blue of this little bird.

I hope he decides to stay around at my feeders for the summer!

That's all Folks!!

Is She the Last One?

On this chilly and rainy October 2nd, I was amazed to see this lone little hummingbird still sipping nectar from my deck feeder. I wonder if she's the last one remaining from the hummers in my yard this summer? Or is she a migrant from up north, taking a little rest and sustenance in order to continue her long journey?

Safe Travels Little Hummingbird! I'll be looking forward to seeing you again next spring!

Amazing Hummingbird Video

I love hummingbirds and the activity around my feeders this weekend has been nothing short of amazing. Flying, buzzing, chirping and chasing has been going on non-stop since it got light this morning. The most I counted at one time was 6 hummers, and this is definitely the most hummingbird activity I've ever seen around my house.

After supper, I decided to try and see if I could get a video of hand-feeding them. I have 5 nectar feeders in various locations around the house, but 2 of those are located on the deck (for maximum viewing pleasure). In order to get them to come to the nectar I'm holding, I have to hide the 2 feeders on the deck. They can still go to another feeder, but since they're used to coming to the deck, that's where I have the best chance of getting pictures of them.

In this video, you will see a pot of purple flowers in the background--right above those purple flowers is where one of the nectar feeders usually hangs, so that's why there's a lot of concentrated hummingbird activity in this area. I watched and fed these hummingbirds for about 20 minutes, but then decided I'd better put their regular feeders back up. Temps are going to be in the low 40's tonight and I wanted to make sure these busy little hummers consumed enough nectar to keep their little bodies stoked for overnight.

Here in the north country, hummingbirds will be migrating soon and it seems like their activity is always greatest this time of year. If you haven't tried handfeeding hummingbirds yet, now would be the perfect time. If you have a nectar feeder, just start by sitting outside and holding the feeder in your hand -- the hummingbirds will come! It takes a little getting used to--especially when they buzz right close to your ears, but I guarantee this will be one of the funnest things you will ever get the chance to do!

Rainy Saturday

It rained for most of today and we picked up just about an inch of much needed moisture. It will be good to roll up the garden hose and put the sprinkler away for a few days. Since my overtime was not approved for the weekend, I got to stay home all by myself while Mr. Johnson enjoyed a fun day at work. I spent most of my day knitting and watching birds (with a few loads of laundry thrown in so Mr. Johnson didn't think I totally wasted my time today).

The rain wasn't continuous, so there was plenty of bird activity all day long. I do have some bad news to report though.....when I went out to check on the baby bluebirds last night the nest box was empty! The nest itself was undisturbed, but there were no babies in it. Raccoon? Snake? I'll never know and this has never happened before in my yard. I'm so sad and I'm sure Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird are too. The only good thing about this is that Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird have stuck around the yard and are looking at another nest box in the front yard. And I'm thrilled that they are hanging around and even coming up to the deck to pick some mealworms out of the feeder I have there.
Did you know that the male bluebird will feed the female? I was happy to be able to capture this image, and even though the male is a little blurry, look how wide that female has her beak open to accept the mealworm from him.
Other birds share mealworms from this feeder, including Baltimore Orioles, Chickadees, and Downy Woodpeckers.
The Bluejays have finally started coming back. They've been gone for several weeks -- busy with nesting and raising a family, I guess. Since they're coming around again, I've started putting some peanuts in the shell back out on the deck. And it's not just the bluejays who are enjoying these peanuts......I have a couple of chipmunks stopping by too.

I know a lot of people hate chipmunks, but I just have so much fun watching them up on the deck and so do Penny and Sophie from behind the patio door.

This little one has lost about half of its tail, so it's easy to distinguish from the other 'munk also coming for peanuts.
For whatever reason, this little 'munk decided to spend some time in the flowerpot with my snapdragons. I've got some compost mixed in with the soil in these pots, so I don't know if he's eating something from the compost or burying a peanut.
Pretty cute, don't you think? (I probably won't think so when I get home from work some day and the snapdragons are all dug out of the pot.....)
I cleaned out and refilled all my hummingbird nectar feeders this afternoon and it didn't take the hummingbirds long to come back for more refreshment. I was surprised to see a second female fly up to this feeder with one female already there feeding.
A few tense moments ensued and I waited for one to chase the other one away.....
.....but amazingly enough, they were both able to sit and eat without fighting.
I hung this feeder under a weather dome, so I think they were both just happy to be able to drink some nectar and stay out of the rain.