nature, Photography

Rufous Hummingbird

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We have had lots of rufous hummingbirds visiting the hanging flowers on our deck.

They are very difficult to capture and moving quickly with the camera is necessary, but sometimes you can get a decent capture.

Unlike the Anna’s hummingbirds that over-winter in British Columbia, the rufous hummingbirds head to Mexico when it gets cooler. It’s amazing that these tiny birds so successfully make the trip, sometimes multiple times according to the band tracking. They are definitely little toughies.

Happy Hummer Friday.

20 thoughts on “Rufous Hummingbird”

    1. Thanks, Allan. I tried to attract them when I lived in Medicine Hat but only ever saw a few. We get them regularly here and can’t help but to stop to watch them. They usually behave so badly with each other – it’s a bit like a flying soap opera!

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    1. Yes, there are many; over 300, I think. We get about five different types here, the most common being the rufous and Anna’s. When they show up to eat, I have to watch them, no matter what I’m doing!

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    1. Yes, they sadly are. Apparently their numbers have declined by 60%. We have lots of petunias which the hummers seem to adore and many of our neighbours have feeders or hummer-friendly flowers. The Anna’s hummingbird numbers have recently been climbing, so that’s some good news. Cheers.

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    1. I agree. It’s unbelievable how far these tiny birds and butterflies go! Unfortunately the migrators’ numbers are dropping though as they’re facing increasing difficulties enroute. By comparison, the hummingbird (Anna’s hummingbird) that winters here is experiencing growing numbers since local habitat threats have been reduced. We humans have a lot of work ahead to try to turn around the damage we keep causing.

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      1. As the old saying goes, it just takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch and sadly we have millions of bad apples who either have no understanding of, or who do and don’t care unless it affects them personally, the importance of Nature and its role in a healthy planet which leads to healthy humans as well as all else. I try not to be a pessimist but when I see how easily all our gains can be undone, as our previous president did, it is a bit depressing.

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        1. Completely. When I listen to some of our politicians carrying on about all the green alternatives they’re instituting while at the same time quietly building another pipeline (yes, we’re building a big one in the north), I literally cringe. I would laugh at them except the consequences are so dire. Ugh.

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    1. I am fascinated by how feisty these tiny birds are. They are famously grumpy and aggressive, but I guess that’s how they make it through their migrations – nothing holds them back, certainly not their size!

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    1. There are definitely significant colour variations, but the males look to a greater or lesser extent like this. The females are a sort of greyish-brown and white. Not colourful at all. Cheers.

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