Hummingbird Don't Fly Away, Fly Away

June 29, 2013  •  1 Comment

We have had a few Ruby-throated Hummingbirds coming to our feeder for almost two months now.  It is common to see them perched on the end of a nearby tree branch before approaching the feeder filled with sweet sugar water. 

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (male) (Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 300mm 2.8L, f/2.8 @ 300mm, 1/1000, ISO 800)

 

Our property contains large plots of naturalized areas including many native plants and trees.  I created several perennial gardens to attract wildlife and one of the most popular flowers we have, to the Hummingbird, is the Monarda (more commonly known as Bee Balm).  Within the past week the Bee Balm began to bloom and we consistently see a male/female pair probing for nectar; giving up on the artificial feeder.   Below is a male feeding on the nectar of a Bee Balm flower.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (male) (Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 300mm 2.8L, f/2.8 @ 300mm, 1/3200, ISO 800)

 

The Hummingbird weighs about as much as a nickel and can briefly maintain forward flying speeds up to 62 mile per hour.  Also in forward flight, they beat their wings up to 80 times per second.  That kind of speed makes it difficult to stop the wings in action, without blur, with a camera.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (male) (Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 300mm 2.8L, f/2.8 @ 300mm, 1/5000, ISO 800)

 

After photographing the male for a brief time, I had a 20 minute waiting period before I was treated with the female coming to feed.  I took that time to look, in camera, at some of the images I made so far.  I noticed the subjects were a little underexposed because of the brighter background so I increased the exposure bias on my Canon 5D Mark III to +2/3 EV.  The change bumped up the exposure just enough to get rid of the shadow areas on the bird.  Below is the female as she approached the flowers.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (female) (Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 300mm 2.8L, f/2.8 @ 300mm, 1/2000, ISO 800)

 

Their little hearts can beat up to 1200 times per minute.  I think that is important as they make a 500 mile, nonstop journey over the Gulf of Mexico each fall during migration.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (female) (Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 300mm 2.8L, f/2.8 @ 300mm, 1/2000, ISO 800)

 

We only have a few more months to enjoy being "buzzed" by the Ruby-throated Hummingbird as my wife and I, friends, and neighbors sit on our back patio.  In September or October they will begin their migration to the south.  I will probably sit back this coming winter, re-read some old blog posts and review some photos from the past year only to begin planning for next summer and what else I can do to attract more of the smallest bird in Pennsylvania.

 

Thanks for looking,

Dan


Comments

Feller(non-registered)
now that is just cool... Nice pics Dan
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