A Few Hummingbird Migration Facts

If you are an avid hummingbird enthusiast, then you will understand when I say that the yard can sure seem mighty lonely without the presence of these little flying dynamos.  My mom and I would miss the aerial displays and territorial behavior of the hummingbirds once they had migrated out of our area of the country.  Have you ever wondered about the journey that these birds make when they leave your area of the country or prior to the hummingbird’s return to the area?  If so, then this post was written with you in mind.

The term migration means the annual movements of the hummingbirds between one region or habitat and another.  Hummingbirds migrate during  both the spring and fall each year.  Also, a hummingbird will follow the exact same path each year from the first time they every made the migratory journey.  These are just a few of the facts about hummingbird migration that I wish to share with you today.

Generally speaking, hummingbirds do not fly very high during migration.  Whenever the hummingbirds are over land, they fly at about treetop level, because this helps them to be able to see and locate potential food sources along the path of their journey.

A hummingbird would be unable to survive the cold temperatures that are found at higher altitudes.  These birds are much too small and there for lack the insulation that they would need to do so. The fact that hummingbirds can’t survive the colder temperatures found at higher altitudes should make people realize that there is no truth whatsoever to the common myth of hummingbirds migrating on the backs of Canadian geese.

A hummingbird that flies over water durning its migratory journey will do so just above the wave tops.

I hope that this post gives you a better understanding of the journey that the hummingbird makes durning both the spring and fall of each year.  Think of it this way, the birds are leaving us for a while but they will eventually return.  Thank goodness, because, in my own opinion, hummingbirds make the world a much happier and brighter place.  That is because each time I see one it serves to remind me of my mom and thoughts of  her always make me happy.