In the 60's there was a song by Seals and Croft that was surprisingly popular. A couple of quotes from the song: "Hummingbird don't fly away, fly away. I just love you, love you, love you, I don't even know the reason why."
I can relate to the joy and delight in hummingbirds that the song inspires (although that wasn't the intention of the song) But I do love the sweet and lovely hummingbirds who return from the south each spring to entertain and add a delightful beauty to my days. This spring, it took a long time to finally have me first sighting, and I was beginning to think I wouldn't see any this year. But then one morning, I saw a lone male, and the next day a female came to the feeder. I was relieved, and happy that they are choosing to honor me with their presence again this summer. I especially love later in the season, when a few more hummingbirds will try to get it on the feeder action. The first female to show up early is always very protective of "her" feeders. No one ever bothers the male at the feeders, but the females will dart out of the spruce tree and put on a dazzling aeronautical display of ascending and descending at rapid speeds, curving a twisting with all their stunts on on display. I put out more feeders as the summer progresses, but it doesn't matter. They still fight over them. I often see videos online of dozens of hummingbirds feeding together at feeders, and I wonder why my hummingbirds can't behave like that. But, I don't mind. My birds are certainly way more entertaining, even if I usually only get about four or five regulars. If I had a big "Charm" of hummingbirds, which is the name for a big group) I wouldn't get anything done all summer besides making nectar, cleaning feeders, and refilling feeders. My small Charm is just right for me!
So now that I'm actively seeing hummingbirds, it's game on, with my homemade nectar and bottle brush and tiny little "feeding portal" brushes, along with reminders on the calendar to refresh feeders at least every three days. The hotter it gets, the more important that job becomes. I try to keep my feeders mostly in shade, but the daggone sun moves around a day! 🙄 Sometimes I'll wrap the feeders in packing paper, to keep the sunlight off of them. My favorite feeding location is right by our living room picture window. It's always in the shade, and the birds are so used to my cats, they're not bothered at all when the cats watch them eat. Honestly, I don't think my cats know that these are birds. They think they're giant bugs, so they just hunker down and freeze, staring in amazement.
Earlier in my Hummingbird feeder career, I had a bird crash into my window. I thought for sure she was dead, because she didn't move for a very long time. My daughter and I were praying for her to recover, calling on St. Francis. Then, suddenly, she popped up and flew off. I was so happy! I also learned to attach things to the window, to prevent that from ever happening again.
This spring, I kept forgetting to do that, but today, a female flew up to the window looking for her "friends." I am so amazed by these birds. They don't live all that long, maybe 4 years, but once they find a summer hide-away, with good food, they come back year after year, and they develop habits, such as always nesting in the same tree, going to their "usual" feeders, and visiting their familiar habitat. Part of my window display is 3 "sun-catcher birds on Hangers. Today, when the female was at the window, I could tell she was looking for those "birds," because she always stops at each one. And I have this feeling that she teaches her offspring all of her tricks, because, without fail, the next round will do the same things!
As soon as I saw my little "Ruby" looking for the birds, I raced down to the garage to get all the items for my window display. So now, finally, everything is in place, and I'm ready for a summer of fun and safe interaction with my lovely friends. And, before we know it, it will be time to pack everything back up and say good bye again, until I get my annual email reminder next spring, saying, "The hummingbirds are on their way!" I'm so blessed to have this experience in the rhythm of my life, and look forward to (hopefully) many more years of it ahead!
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