Category: Hummingbirds

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Dear Mom Hummingbirds

Little is Known About Hummingbird Evolution

Today’s post, which is on the evolution of the hummingbird, makes me think of my mom because I am absolutely certain that she would have enjoyed this subject and I hope you will as well. In my mind’s eye, I can vividly imagine the two of us watching a show on the subject of hummingbird evolution on one of the various cable channels and then talking about all that we had just viewed.

The information contained in this post comes from Wikipedia. I have been quite curious about all things relating to hummingbirds for several years now, so I find this subject to be quite interesting myself and I hope you will also.

The evolutionary history is actually quite difficult to accurately document, due to the fact that the bones of the hummingbird are hollow and quite fragile which makes fossilization of the bones extremely difficult. Scientist have theorized many things though. They believe that the hummingbird originated in South America, because this is where there is the greatest amount of diversity among the various species of hummingbirds. Also, scientist believe that possible ancestors of hummingbird species still in existence today may have lived in Europe all the way to what is today known as southern Russia.

In 2004, two 30-million year old hummingbird fossils were identified by Dr. Gerald Mayr, who had his results published in Nature. The remains had been in a drawer of a musemum in Stuttgart, Germany and no one knew what they were until Dr. Mayr took a look at them. The reason no one had identified them properly is because people assumed that hummingbirds never occurred outside the Americas. While hummingbirds may only be found in the Americas today, apparently this was not always the case.

Hummingbirds are such truly fascinating creatures and they never cease to amaze me. Discovering a bit about the hummingbird’s evolutionary history has been no different. I hope you have also enjoyed making this discovery as well. Are you, like me, amazed to discover that two hummingbird fossils are known to be 30-million years old?

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Hummingbirds

Green-throated Carib Hummingbird Facts

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  • The Green-throated Carib Hummingbird is found to be most abundant in number at low elivations.
  • The Green-throated Carib Hummingbird can be seen in the Lesser Antillies, Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
  • The sexes of this species of hummingbird are alike.
  • This species of hummingbird occurs in a wide range of habitats including: semi-deciduous woodlands, wet forest, and second growth.
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Hummingbirds

Antillean Crested Hummingbird

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  • In Antigua, the Antillean Crested Hummingbird is commonly referred to as "Doctor Bushy."
  • The Antillean Crested Hummingbird is the most common hummingbird of the islands.
  • This hummingbird species is found throughout the lesser Antillies.  They are must abuntantly found in the lowlands, but they are also known to be widespread from sea level to mountain forest.

This is a species of hummingbird that I myself had never heard of before, prior to doing some further research into the subject of hummingbirds.  Have ever heard of this species before?  If so, do you have any additional information that you would like to share about this particular species of hummingbird? Your comments are always welcome.

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Hummingbirds

About the White-eared Hummingbird

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The White-eared Hummingbird is rarely known to breed in the United States and they are usually found in the high tropical mountains.With this particular species the male weighs more then the female, with the male weighing 3.6 grams to the females weight of 3.2 grams.

The White-eared Hummingbird is known to winter in the mountains of Mexico.Although quite rare, this species of hummingbird has been observed in the following states:Arizona,Michigan,Mississippi,New Mexico,and Texas.

If you think you have seen a White-eared Hummingbird here is a brief description of what both the adult male and female looks like.Hopefully, this should help you with the identification process of the particular hummingbird you have just seen.

The adult male has an emerald green back and breast, purple crown, iridescent blue-green chin, prominent white ear stripe, red bill with black tip.

The adult female can be described as having the following: a green back and crown, white breast and sides with green streaks, prominent white ear stripe, and a red bill with black tip.

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Hummingbirds

Illnesses or Injuries of Hummingbirds

Just like humans, hummingbirds can have illesses or injures.  Have you ever stopped to consider what types of things these might be?  Well, this post will give you answer. 

  • Window strikes:  This can either stun or even kill the hummingbird.
  • Cat caught hummingbirds:  The cat is the number one predator of the hummingbird, and therfore this is quite common and can either result in the hummingbird being injurd or killed.
  • Sick hummingbirds:  Common hummingbird illnesses include fungal infections and the avian pox virus. 
  • Trapped hummingbird:  You will want to tire the hummingbird by keeping it flying as much as possible, because this eventually make it easier for you to catch the bird and then release it.  Be sure to feed the bird prior to releasing it or the bird may not have enough energy to search for food.  You do not want to release a trapped hummingbird at night.   Unfortunately, I can not offer a reason for this, but read it from several sources.