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Fighting Hummingbirds

Two hummingbirds in mid air ready to fight
Two hummingbirds in mid air ready to fight

Have you ever wondered what can cause hummingbirds to fight each other? If so, then this post will offer you some insight as to why this occurs.

Hummingbirds will fight to protect their food source or to guard and defend their territory. The birds will use their bills and claws as weapons. Sometimes, the birds may even collide with one another.

It is quite rare for a hummingbird to be injured during a fight, because their instincts tell them not to risk injuring their bills. Amazingly enough, hummingbirds fight less whenever food is scarce. I was unable to find out a reason for this in any of the sources I read while researching this topic.

Hummingbirds do not attack humans, but they have been known to get within inches of someone’s face. This experience can indeed be frightening.

As I said before, a hummingbird will fight to defend its territory. Both the male and female each establish their own territory. The female’s territory is where the nest will be built and where the young will be feed. The male’s territory is a way for the male to protect a reliable food source. The male does not take any responsibility for the building of the nest or for the care and feeding of the young. If a female hummingbird enters a male hummingbird’s territory, he will perform aerial displays to keep her away. It is so important to both the sexes that individual territories be maintained that the act of mating takes place on neutral ground.

While it is impossible to try and explain every possible reason why hummingbirds fight, it is my sincere desire that this post will have provided some insight into this topic. Maybe you will understand better why there is often a fierce battle of the various hummingbirds at your feeders.

One reply on “Fighting Hummingbirds”

It does appear that anybody is into these kinds of stuff just lately. Don’t really have an understanding of it however, nevertheless many thanks wanting to describe it.

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