I was taking nature pix in the yard, and then it happened

[Omaha Steve]

Last edited Tue Sep 8, 2015, 07:36 PM - Edit history (1)

I went out to take a few photos of the baby squirrel eating bread I put out. S/he comes up within a couple feet and begs. I was over by the sun flower chip feeder when this female hummingbird showed up. I took a few photos of her and figured that was it. I went over to check the jelly feeder. That is when it happened. She landed on my head and just watched what I was doing. I had the camera around my neck. But there is no way to take a photo of this type with the camera we have.

Here she is.

[CrispyQ]

1. Very cool!

My neighbor put up a h-bird feeder, but never refilled it.

[notadmblnd]

2. dont plant feeders, plant flowers

The Rose of Sharon bush is the biggest draw of humming birds in my yard. Occasionally though I see them in my Echinacea

[phylny]

6. I have feeders and flowers.

The hummingbirds flock to both. They are a joy to watch. I'll keep my feeders fresh and out until we don't see any for a week, just to help the stragglers migrating.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

9. Really? We've got several of those,

I always thought of rose of sharon as another trash bush.

[notadmblnd]

18. No, not trash at all. You know it's related to the marsh mallow plant

I bet you didn't know that marshmallow grows on trees. I kid- but it is related to a plant of the mallow family and yeah, in mid to late summer they have beautiful flowers and come in several different colors. Now, the purple coneflowers some might think of as more of a weed, but as recently as last week I saw a humming bird flitting in them. I thought it was a big dragon fly at first but once it hovered for a few seconds I realized it was a bird.

I've seen a couple of what is normally rare creatures recently in my yard. I had a grey frog on my deck one day and a couple of months ago, there was an owl sitting on the railing one day. There's also a little yellow bird with black wings that flits around the yard once in a while that I don't know what it is. Heck, even a pair of mallards nested along the side of my driveway recently one spring. But yeah, when ever I see a humming bird- it has always been in my rose of sharon or in my coneflowers.

[lastlib]

21. Could it be one of these?

American Goldfinch

[Omaha Steve]

22. Beat me to it

The same feeder the humming bird is next to in the OP photo.

[notadmblnd]

25. yes, that looks like it. thanks

[Omaha Steve]

69. We planted two Rose of Sharons yesterday

We have butterflies and hummingbirds investigating them today. I hope to have pix later.

OS

[notadmblnd]

70. sweet!

[roguevalley]

17. Steve, I was feeling blue and missing my parents who are both passed. Some days, even after all this

time, its hard.

SO I log in to read something and the first post I opened was yours. Hummingbirds were my dad's favorite bird. They were around his home in western Oregon his whole life. When he passed I nearly tripped over hummingbirds when before they were never around, images and the like. Now, when I needed a boost, this happened. Thank you. Keep posting things, my dear. You never know how you help someone.

[Omaha Steve]

32. I just found these...enjoy

All of ours fight for their feeder. Nothing like the friends in the first gif.









OS

[Maraya1969]

33. I bought a humming bird feeder. It says to boil sugar to put

it in it. But is there anything better? I have this guava syrup that would have more nutrients. I really want to see some birds.

I put one of those see through bird feeders on my kitchen window and not one bird fed off it. I thought that maybe there is too much activity for them to feel safe. So the humming bird feeder is going outside another window but not that close.

[Omaha Steve]

36. We just use the bird store bought mix, but here is How to Make Hummingbird Nectar

There are several other ways to do it with a quick google.

FULL info and photos: http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Hummingbird-Nectar

[TygrBright]

49. PLAIN sugar water is fine. 4:1 water:sugar, boil 5 min. add NO coloring. n/t

[duhneece]

50. NO! Feeding other than sugar can cause beak mold

Honey, guava, etc. can cause mold on their beaks...don't know why. Seems counter intuitive to me, but I know it to be true from professional yearrs ago.

[roguevalley]

34. Awwwwwwwww

[pkdu]

37. Awesome pics...we have nothing like No.1

Our backyard feeders are dominated by one alpha male...he chases everyone else off as best he can.

We do however have the Oriole (yellow/black) visitor who are well know as the the only other bird who can deal with the small HB feeder mechanism here in SoCal

Will have to try hand-feeding ..awesome

[CrispyQ]

44. Here's something to put a smile on your face.

This guy came up with a hummingbird feeder mask & put a camera inside.

I'm always amazed at human ingenuity!

[Snobblevitch]

53. I took a bicycle helmet and attached a two foot steel rod to it with nylon ties.

I then attached a small hummingbird feeder to the end of the steel rod.

We took turns wearing this contraption out on our deck. I wish I had taken some photos or video. This was about ten years ago. It's really cool to see the hummingbirds that close. You can hear and feel the vibrations. I wore protective eyewear because when there is more than one hummingbird, they sometimes they smack you in the face.

[CrispyQ]

55. Make another one & invite me over!

[Omaha Steve]

56. Kinda like this?

[Snobblevitch]

58. Exactly like that, except only one feeder.

I don't even remember where the thing is. The small hummingbird feeder got run over because it fell onto the floor of the garage.

[Hortensis]

3. Delightful! What a lovely little thing.

[hunter]

4. I love hummingbirds.

Usually they are not comfortable enough to land on me.

At best they are indifferent.

Mostly I am attacked for interrupting their daily routines. All the flowering plants my wife and I have planted belong to them. So does the bubbly fountain and little fish pond, especially in this drought.

I was out a few days ago standing very still watching them. Two males were were having a very serious disagreement. They were buzzing around my head, using me as a shield, and it sounded like a Star Wars light saber fight.

[Omaha Steve]

8. We have 2 feeders right next to the deck

So they are used to seeing us all the time.

We have 3 tube feeders. We go through 2 tubes a day. And ours fight all day long too. Tails spread out. The males flash their red throats.

[sunnystarr]

5. That had to be such a wonderful feeling !! (nt)

[hankthecrank]

7. Maybe she saying Thank you for saving so many hummingbird last fall

When you put out all those heated hummingbird feeders when the weather turned bad
Thank you for that!!

[DirkGently]

10. Excellent.

The shot of her sitting on your head would be priceless.

[malaise]

11. Beautiful

Thanks

[C Moon]

12. Pretty!

[homegirl]

13. Hummingbird shower

Several months ago, when we could still water our California gardens, I was using a hose to water some plants. A lovely hummingbird flew into the spray and stayed for several minutes enjoying a shower.

[840high]

15. How sweet.

[arikara]

23. Fun, hey? I gave one a shower once too

I was spraying my compost and noticed a hummingbird on a twig all interested in the spray so I turned it on her. She had the nicest bath, preened in the mist for a good 10 minutes.

When we first moved here we went through 50 lbs of sugar in the summer. Now I have more flowers planted so its down to only 10 or 15 lbs. Unfortunately, I also have winter hummers that move in after the summer ones migrate. I say unfortunately because they are a pain. If its freezing outside I have to cycle the feeders every hour or 2 so they don't freeze, so I can't go away from home too long. If I forget to bring one in at night it freezes solid and breaks. Sigh. Its not that I leave the feeder out so they don't migrate, I have to bring it in for a few weeks so the bears don't go at it. It doesn't go out again until it gets cold and I see the birds humming around looking for it, I always hope they'll move on to warmer climes instead, but they always come back.

[MADem]

28. I have some links for you that might be useful.

A heated feeder: http://hummersheateddelight.com/index.html


Some tricks to warm your existing ones: http://www.hummingbirdmarket.com/hummingbird_articles/feeding_hummingbirds_in_the_cold.html

Lots of good ideas there...

HTH!

[arikara]

31. Thank you

I will certainly check it out!

[MADem]

35. I have a soft spot for wildlife, too! I'm sure those birds appreciate you greatly. nt

[alfredo]

14. Wow!

[glinda]

16. Lucky you!!!!!!!!! Have always wanted to be this lucky!

[Baitball Blogger]

19. Missed selfie opportunity!

[higherarkies]

20. tew kewl!

tnx, os.

[mconnors]

24. Reminded me of my story with one

Last summer one got stuck in my garage and it was flying in to the walls. So I shut the light off and it went right to the floor so I put gloves on and it went in to my hands I closed them some what together and walk it out and took to a fence post open my hands he climbed on post then took off and did a fly by and it was gone. I was honored the bird trusted me. Your story reminded me of mine, thank you

[arikara]

51. They are light as a feather, aren't they?

I've rescued some out of the garage and porch too. One even trapped in a bit of old mesh fencing. I kept hearing this weird buzzing on on investigation it turned out to be a hummingbird. I had to call the mr to bring a pair of needle nose scissors to get that one loose.

I guess I do have lots of hummingbird stories.

Welcome to DU!

[peacebird]

26. Very cool!!

[Plucketeer]

27. Hummingbirds?

As I type this, I'm watching a crowd of them dining at the 10 large feeders we have up. This year - since April - we've gone thru 400 lbs. of sugar. I make 8 quarts of "nectar" about every day and a half during the long, thirsty summer. The rush is just now starting to fade as many of the birds are heading south for the winter months. There's nothing like a swirling, 80+ cloud of bickering, squeaky hummers when things get really intense here!

[greatlaurel]

29. Great post!

Thank you for the fabulous picture.

[arikara]

30. One time

the mr was wearing his bright red suspenders and riding around on his orange lawn tractor.  The hummingbirds followed him all over the yard, buzzing him attracted by all the colour which made him all nervous.  He came in the house all concerned and upset, and says to me, "You don't think they'd drive a beak into a guy's head, do you?"

I've been laughing about that for years. I tell you he would never have stood there and let one sit on his head!

[allan01]

38. aww

i was at my late dads house when he passed a few years back and the day after was his birthday. whilst on the porch at late evening time a hummer stuck its tounge in my ear . thanks for the post .

[NBachers]

39. Wow, what a great thread this is. Steve, I can just see you trying to invert a camera over your head

and trying to capture a shot of the hummingbird.

[nankerphelge]

40. You need to get one of these

Hummingbird mask:
http://nerdist.com/dive-into-extreme-hummingbird-feeding-with-this-amazing-face-mask/

[spooky3]

41. You might like this clip:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/09/08/science/the-hummingbirds-tongue-how-it-works.html?_r=0

[tblue37]

42. How lucky to get such a precious moment! nt

[leftyladyfrommo]

43. You Reach su he a nice guy

Omaha Steve. Thank you for all the animal threads. This world needs lots and lots of gentle men.

[kydo]

45. Thats a good picture

Hummingbirds can be tricky to photograph. Good job!

[lunasun]

46. Awesome! I imagine it must have been a strange and magical moment

[Texin]

47. Lovely! They're my favorites

I've seen one briefly this summer floating and flurrying in the orange and crimson blooms on my Pride of Barbados plant. We've had such a strange summer here in the Dallas area. It was so wet and cool up until about June and nothing was blooming. Then, BAM! It got so hot and dry, but we finally had the first blooms show up around the July 4th holiday. The Pride didn't get going bloom-wise until nearly August. I've tried to use feeders to attract the hummers, but I've never had any luck. The only thing I've ever seen in the landscape that attracted the little sweeties is this PofB, and I love it!

[jonno99]

48. Very cool - thanks for the excellent post! nt

[Glassunion]

52. Your idea of "Nature" pics is way different from mine.

I was expecting something else.

Regardless, that is quite the photo.

[Vinca]

54. That's amazing. I've never heard of a hummingbird doing that.

I love to watch them, too, and it's rare they even stop their fluttering long enough to sit on a leaf, let alone a person. Wow!

[dougolat]

57. One year in Colorado we had TWO hummer nests!

I used a step ladder and a small mirror on a stick to see in, and the eggs look like jelly-beans. After they hatch they're so small, you can imagine them being fed by the parents' beak like an almost hypodermic diameter sized eye-dropper. In a few weeks they're peeking out and buzzing, but I missed the maiden flights.

[Gloria]

59. I live on an arroyo and I have "my trained flock"....every AM!

At around 7 a. m., the 2 white tailed doves wait on my trellis and fly to the wall as soon as I come out.
I then throw the seed over the wall and tap the plastic container 3 times....
The "clucking" begins and the quail begin to parade up from the vegetation on the slope below.

Sometimes, they come running down the little dirt road ...they get together in a group and proceed to a fine,
al fresco dining experience. The adults, the juveniles, and the babies all eating together...it's so nice to see!

No feeders up this year, but usually I have them divebombing. I do have flowers they go to, instead.

I also put out grape jelly and the finches and thrashers just go to town! Some orioles, too!

[silverweb]

62. Grape jelly?

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]I have a special finch feeder and fill it with what's supposed to be their favorite seed mix and extra nyjer, but have had no action at all so far.

When I lived farther south, there were a couple of dozen that frequented the same feeder and set up a noisy chorus whenever the seed level was getting a little low. They were highly entertaining - and great "cat TV" through the window.

Now there are doves, jays, and a pair of grackles who come for the other mix I put on the ground - but no finches to the feeder, and I'm especially fond of them.

Will have to try the grape jelly. Thanks for the tip!

[Gloria]

63. Also have a niger feeder

But they love the jelly for quick snacks for energy!

[silverweb]

64. How do you serve the jelly?

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]A suspended saucer or something similar?

[Omaha Steve]

65. Here are many to look over

http://www.duncraft.com/Ultimate-Oriole-Feeder

Many oriole feeders have jelly, nectar and orange slices on one feeder like the video above. Hummingbirds don't seem to care for the oranges.

In the spring we can go though a couple jars of jelly a day. The bigger the bowl the better.

http://www.duncraft.com/Oriole-and-Jelly-Bird-Feeders?view_all

http://www.duncraft.com/Oriole-Triple-Cup-Jelly-Feeder

[silverweb]

66. I've never seen these before.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]They're wonderful! Thanks!

[Gloria]

67. I have old hanging wire baskets, that came with the

moss...I put big shards of broken pots on them and that's it....instant jelly feeder!

Plastic gets crummy and I don't use big bowls....a couple of TBS on the two I have hanging near each other in the same tree seems to last a few days....I don't want to encourage just eating jelly....the finches come at the end of the day...
this is not an all day feeding frenzy....As I said, I'm on an arroyo full of vegetation and there is a decent food supply that I supplement, esp. in the winter...

[silverweb]

68. Great idea!

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]I have one of those moss baskets that's not being used at the moment (though I have plans for it). I'll try that before I make or buy some other kind of feeder for the jelly.

Thanks!

[silverweb]

61. Love my hummingbirds!

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]We have a few varieties where I live, some shy and probably just passing through, but a number that are regulars and very comfortable around people standing close by.

Several neighbors in my apartment complex also have feeders, and we're treated to almost constant aerial acrobatics as they chase and flit from one to another.
They're such a joy to have around!

[colorado_ufo]

71. Magical moment!