Saturday, September 4, 2010

Busy Hummingbirds after Tropical Storm Earl

Well, there was a lot of hype about Hurricane Earl for several days, but by yesterday early afternoon the storm was downgraded to a Tropical storm and really fizzled out. Thank goodness! We got some heavy rain in short bursts yesterday afternoon and evening, but ended up getting less than 2 inches of rain total. The Cape and islands got the brunt of the storm with high winds and more rain. This morning the sun is shining and it is just a gorgeous day.
Anyway, before 8  o ' clock this morning I went out on the deck to fill my hummingbird feeders, and the wee birds were waiting for me. One just hovered in front of me for several moments. Like it was trying to tell me...hurry up..I'm hungry, why aren't those feeders filled yet.  I think the birds must have been this years hatchlings as I saw no red on these ruby throated hummers and I haven't had that many females come at one time throughout the summer.  This morning I saw about 8 at one time, all chasing one another off. They waste more time trying to scare the others off. I have seen photos where several are feeding on a feeder at once, but that doesn't happen in my yard. That's why I bought the single feed tubes.
I would love to find a hummingbird's tiny nest at the end of the season. So, I could bring it in to save and display on my bookcase. I guess the hummers are getting ready for their migration so that is why they have been to the feeders so often the past several days. Yesterday, during the rain they came to feed. They chose the feeders under the roof overhang during the rains.
I ran and got my camera after I filled the feeders, and snapped off these photos. I so enjoy these fierce, little, awesome birds. Don't you just love how fast their little wings beat and the camera can catch them in slow motion. Enjoy!
hummingbird 1 hummingbird 2
hummingbird 3 hummingbird 4
hummingbird 6 this photo has 2 birds. One sitting and the 2nd one flying in for a drink on the lower right corner.
 hummingbirds 7  hummingbird 9 hummingbird 10
elaine signature3

4 comments:

Kerry said...

Elaine, wonderful pictures! I love watching hummingbirds! It looks like these little guys posed for you! Thanks for sharing.

Diann said...

Love your hummingbird pictures....they are a wonder for sure. We don't have any HB feeders because they attract bees and my husband is highly allergic to them. I'm loving seeing yours! Diann

Tammy D said...

How awesome to see. Thank you for sharing them.

Anonymous said...

Delightful post. We have them here too, but they come and go quickly between feedings, never hovering. That's really neat!