Category: Hummingbirds

Molting is when hummingbirds go through a a normal cycle of coplete loss and replacement of all their feathers.  This process occurs in the spring.

Many species of hummingbirds can be quite difficult to identify.  Looking at the tail can be a good way to help you identify the various parts of the hummingbird.  You will want to determine if the tail contains any white or rufous spots. It is also important to determine where the spots are on the tail. How big are the spots?

Whenever I think of seeing hummingbirds I think of having them in the area in the spring and fall.   Living as I do in southeast Texas, which is located about 90 miles east of Houston, I don’t remember ever having seen many hummingbirds in this  area in the winter.  A friend recently asked if there were any hummingbirds found nearby in the the winter.  Not wanting to answer the question without having looked into the subject, I replied that I would get back to them with the answer to this question.  This is what has lead me to write this post.

According to the Huston Audubon Society, there are several species of hummingbirds which one might site in Houston during the winter months.  There are a very small number of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds which actually winter-over in the Houston area along with small numbers of Rufous Hummingbirds.

It is relatively common for Black-chinned Hummingbirds to be found in the Houston area during the winter months.  It may surprise you to discover, as it did me, that 85% of the time whenever people see what they believe to be a Ruby-throated Hummingbird in the winter is actually a Black-chinned Hummingbird, according to Brent Ortega, a local expert on hummingbirds.

Apart from the hummingbird species mentioned previously in this post, you might also see the following hummingbird species in the Houston area during the winter:  Anna’s, Allen’s, Broad-tailed and Buff-bellied Hummingbirds,

Although Houston is not right next door to Beaumont it isn’t extremely far away either, so there are hummingbirds that can be seen there during the winter months.  There also might be a rare vagrant hummingbird that will actually visit us closer to home, but there is no way to know for certain if this will occur or not.  

If you want to be helpful to the hummingbirds, why not leave your feeders up during the winter months?  Any hummingbirds that visit it will be grateful for the source of food and they will rely on it more then at other times of the year.  Due to the fact that the normal winter temperatures found in Houston are warmer then in other parts of the country, your feeders will only need to be brought inside on nights in which a freeze has been predicted. 

• The Hummingbird call is one of two basic vocal sounds made by the hummingbird with the other one being a song.
• The call of a hummingbird allows the bird to communicate information such as the bird’s age, sex, species or even its emotional state.
• The use of calls allows the hummingbirds draw attention to danger, express pain or fear, or as a method used to intimidate their competitors.
• The ability to call will usually occur within minutes of when they leave the nest.