Like so many other birds we see and hear in our backyards during the spring and summer, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird is a migrant, who spends its winters in Central America and breeds in the warmer months throughout the eastern half of the United States and southern Canada. Each year, several Ruby-throated Hummingbirds return to my backyard, where I hang a feeder of homemade nectar and plant flowers (like Beebalm and Delphinium) that suit their tastes. (Photo courtesy of Charles H. Warren.)
Every year I make sure that my feeder is up and ready for the first arrivals, usually on May 1 or 2. You’d be surprised at how punctual these nectar-loving birds can be. Of course, more southern locations will greet their first arrivals much sooner than we do here in north-central Pennsylvania. In fact, hummer enthusiasts have already reported the first comers to the shores of Texas and Florida. These tiny dynamos fly non-stop over the Gulf of Mexico to reach us here in the United States (though some will skirt the Gulf Coast).
You can track their arrival to your state by checking out this incredibly informative site:
http://www.hummingbirds.net/
Click on Report Migrating Ruby-throated to see exactly where these birds have been sighted and to report your own first sighting of these amazing birds with wing beats of 53 times a second; who can hover and fly backward, and who build their nests from spider webs.
And if you want to learn how to attract Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds to your own backyard, check out this site:
http://www.birds-n-garden.com/
Search for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds for pages of tips!
I don’t know about you, but I’ll be checking Hummingbirds.Net each day to follow the path of these incredible, beautiful birds to my state and then to my own backyard!
Till next time . . . happy birding!
Georgia Anne
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