Friday, September 16, 2011

Hummers Swarming

When I arrived home from my office last evening, around 7:00, my feeders were swarming with hummingbirds.  I use that term both because of the large numbers, and the buzzing of that many wings all at once!  Amazing to experience in all aspects.
Three of the six feeders I had out were empty, so I quickly refilled them, then settled in a chair to watch the activity.  Hummers jockeyed for feeder position and then just as suddenly, settled quietly in groups of seven or more until the next addition came along disturbing the whole group.  A crisp gusting wind arrived along with the dimming light. We had a front coming through and the temperature had already dropped to 57 F, headed for around 52 F later.  And, while this is not terribly cold, it represents a considerable and sudden drop for this time of year in east Tennessee.
There were clearly more hummers converging on the feeders all at once than I had witnessed on any other evening this week.  I managed to catch as many as nine in some of the photos you see here, but there were more above and below the feeders than I could capture in one image.  Multiply that by six feeders, with at least four to six approaching and feeding on each, and you have an idea of the numbers I was seeing.
What a spectacle and a privilege.  Since the light was getting very low, I snapped a few images with the flash, thinking that I was probably accomplishing nothing.  But even though the color of the birds changed from their normal emerald green to gold, the images didn't turn out as bad as I initially thought.  I actually like the way the flash lit up their wings.  So, I'm sharing them with you just to give you a bit more of the experience.


The individual images you see below, were taken earlier in the week in better light conditions. I enjoy trying to capture flight images and will show these to you in another post. I use the images for art reference, useful even when they aren't so clear, but also because I enjoy seeing the magnification through the lens.  Sketching these birds while I watch is my next goal.  I think I'm close.  I've certainly watched them enough!
I've had one male at the feeders for the past few days that has a warning chirp considerably different from the others.  It sounds a bit like the rhythm of a chickadee call, but higher pitched.  In a synchronous moment, I managed to capture an image of him at the same time I heard his voice.  It wasn't until I looked at the image that I realized his lower beak is damaged, bent so that it doesn't completely close.
These are not exactly the details you want to see, but I comfort myself in seeing that he seems healthy and preened, and has done a fair job of establishing his place at the feeder, guarding from the top from time to time.  In fact, I've seen several males guarding from that position this season, maybe because of the heavy migration numbers.  This one was in the middle of all the fray.  I expect he, along with many others, said their goodbyes to this feeding station, and I'll be seeing a fresh group of faces with first light.

9 comments:

  1. Absolutely wonderful!! I would love to have all those! I have one female Ruby~throat right at this time. I'm supposing she's fattening up for the migration.

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  2. I would be beside myself if that many hummers were at my feeders all at once. There have been many more hummers for a while here but nothing like you are seeing. Me, being in the woods probably has a lot to do with it and nothing really blooming right now in my yard. Have a friend who is seeing them in numbers like yours and she said yesterday it was wild. Do you suppose the little guy with the damaged beak could have done it fighting over a feeder?

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  3. Hi Cindy! It was an amazing experience to see so many all at once, and to see them settling down so close to each other. I suspect your hummer will be round and plump for her journey across the gulf!

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  4. Jean, I was in awe of what I was seeing. My yard is a clearing in broken woods, on a hill near the Smoky Mountains. I did plant some late flowers and I think that, in addition to six feeders, may be attracting them. I know the adults remember the feeding places and return each year. But the juveniles are a mystery, following their instincts and finding food with their keen sight.

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  5. Vickie you are on one end of Tenn and I on the other. I will surely miss the little jewels when they are gone.

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  6. This is incredible, Vickie. The effect you got using the flash is great.

    We live in the Rockies and so usually get three different species of hummers, but to see ruby-throats congregate like this is amazing to me.

    I was telling my husband about your hummingbirds and he wondered if you lived near the Smoky Mountains. Looks like he guessed right!

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  7. Wow! I am sure that was sooo exciting!

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  8. Vickie, I thought of this post tonight. In September, the hummingbird activity slowed down quite a bit here. Until... Our temps dropped from 90 to 65 overnight. Today, it's dark, chilly, and a bit wet. I came home from work to see more hummingbirds than I had at peak time in late July, early August. I have three feeders and there were at least 6 humming around each one.... I am stunned. I have never witnessed this before in mid-September.

    Your photos are the best!

    I love the hummingbirds and get all melancholy late October when I take the feeders down. I always miss what they offer. They're so sweet and magical.

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  9. Amazing pictures, thank you for sharing.

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