Month: October 2008

Categories
Hummingbird Food

What Does a Hummingbird Eat?

The hummingbirds diet consist of nectar, both from flowers and hummingbird feeders, and insects.  Nectar is the primary food source, but insects are also neccessary as a source of protein. 
 
90 percent of the hummingbird’s diet consists of nectar from flowers or feeders. The hummingbird will eat between 5-8 times per hour for about 30 seconds at a time.  A hummingbird may visit about 1000 flowers per day. 
 
They also eat insects and spiders which provides the protein necessary for their diet.  Protein is of vital importance to a hummingbird, because they can not survive on nectar alone.

How Does a Hummingbird Awaken from Torpor?

Torpor is a state similar to hibernation. Hummingbirds must enter this state to ensure that the birds won’t actually starve to death before down. Torpor is a type of deep sleep where an animal lowers its hart and metabolic rate. In a state of torpor the hummingbird lowers its metabolic rate by as much as 95%. A torpid hummingbird consumes up to 50 times less energy than when awake.

The sleep of torpid hummingbirds is a sleep that is as deep as death. According to the book, American Ornithology, written by Alexander Wilson in 1832, torpor is described as follows: "No motion of the lungs could be perceived … the eyes were shut, and, when touched by the finger, [the bird] gave no signs of life or motion."
 
Hummingbirds reliably awaken from torpor one or two hours before dawn without any known cues from the environment. It appears that the bird’s internal circadian clock is responsible for signaling when it is time to awaken from the state of torpor. 
 
 

 
 
Categories
Hummingbird Food

What is Hawking?

When the hummingbird catches the insect, this is done using a process known as “hawking.” This is when the hummingbird flies and dives to capture the insect out of the air.
Categories
Hummingbird Food

Plants Known to Attract Hummingbirds

 

Bee Balm

This perennial blooms in midsummer and grows about three feet tall. There are many varieties of colors and sizes available at nurseries. The variety Jakob Kline is resistant to powdery mildew.

Cardinal Flower

The red spike of flowers arises from the basal leaves of this perennial in late summer. This plant tolerates some shade and prefers a moist soil.

 

Trumpet Creeper

A tall, vigorous vine, the large flowers are very attractive to hummingbirds. The pictured variety has yellow flowers but most often they have red flowers.

Coral Honeysuckle

This plant is considered a well-behaved vine which flowers profusely in April and May and then sporadically throughout the summer. With the return of cooler weather in the fall, it flowers heavily again. The pictured variety has yellow flowers but they are usually pinkish-red.

 

Columbine

This perennial blooms from April to June and grows about one foot high. It tolerates some shade and likes to grow amid rocks.

 
All information listed above comes from the Migratory Bird Center. You may find out much more about them by clicking on the link provided below.
 
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/conservationandscience/migratorybirds/webcam/hummingbirds.cfm
 
 

What is Hummingbird Banding?

Have you ever wondered what is meant by the term “banding”? Many people have heard of the term but are not entirely clear on just what the term means. It is my hope that this post will give you a better understanding of just what “banding” means.
 
“Banding" is when a hummingbird is temporarily trapped and a tiny numbered strip of aluminum is wrapped around one leg. The bird is trapped only long enough for the “banding” to take place and no harm is done to the hummingbird as a result of this process. This method is currently the only way to identify individual hummingbirds. Individual species are studied by gathering data on large numbers of individuals.
 
Banding studies suggest that individual birds may follow a set route year after year, often arriving at the same feeder on the same day. It isn’t currently known for certain if any individual bird follows the same route in both directions, but there are some indications that they do not. Further research is needed on the matter before any definitive conclusion can be reach on this subject.