I am constantly astounded by the constant discoveries about hummingbirds that I continue to make. This post is the direct result of one such discovery and it will discuss the diet of a baby hummingbird. I hope that you will find it as interesting as I myself did while doing the research for this post.
When a baby hummingbird is first born it is unable to eat nectar as an adult hummingbird would do. The mother hummingbird will feed on bugs and nectar which will then be regurgitated in the form of a slurry substance on which the baby hummingbirds are feed approximately every 20 minutes.
The mother hummingbird will signal to the baby hummingbirds that it is time to eat by landing on the nest which causes the babies to feel the wind from the mother’s wings and thus open their mouth. Using her beak the mother hummingbird will place the food (the slurry substance) inside the baby hummingbird’s mouth with the use of an up-and-down pumping motion.
If a baby hummingbird were fed only normal nectar this would cause harm to the baby hummingbird. The baby hummingbird would likely be severely crippled or even die, due to the fact the normal nectar lacks enough protein.
A baby hummingbird will begin to fly at about the age of three weeks. At this time, the mother hummingbird will accompany the young birds for a few more days to show the young where the best sources of nectar and bugs can be located. It is after this that the young birds are then left to live on their own.
Even though I have a large knowledge base on the subject of hummingbirds, I never want to stop learning about these amazing birds. I know I enjoy making these kinds of discoveries and it is my hope that you all will as well. This type of topic especially makes me think of my mom and our shared love of these birds, because I know she would have enjoyed making these same discoveries right along with each of you.