HUMMER

[AgentOrange]

It is 95.3 in the shade here on the porch today, and a bout a degree hotter at the lake. It it a nice, warm day in South Carolina. The drought is in full force around here and the lake is 10 foot down, but there is still a lot of water out there.

Here in my garden, I water things everyday. I have had to let 80% of the yard go and just try to keep up the section here off the porch where I like to sit. It is shaded and lush. All the Summer flowers are out now and the place looks great.

The birds are less as is usual in Summer, but this Summer is the worst so far as to different ones hanging out here. This year I only got two Hummingbirds. I guess the many that always come here ran into an Al Gore wind mill farm and were slaughtered. The two have nested and brought the kids around, so now I have about 5 or 6. Even 5 or 6 really adds non-stop action. I have out 8 feeders including one about 2 feet from my feet that a baby has claimed. Others keep running him off of course, but he keeps returning to sit beside me. I think they do all this jousting to gain the strength for the big Fall Migration. They are incredible creatures. In a normal year, I would go through a few gallons a week, but this year I don't think I will even need to bring out the big feeders.
Oh well, these will fly to Peru or some place, return next year and my 5 or 6 will become a dozen or more. The next year I will be back to normal.

Keep your feeders filled as this is the time Hummingbirds most need a little help as they fatten up for Migration. It is also the time they are the most entertaining. Don't worry about them fighting, they love it - just enjoy the show.
Change the water out every couple days as in the heat it can ferment.
Feeding Hummingbirds is cheap, so help the little guys out with a free meal.

They are also very easy to photo, even with the camera in your phone as they get quite tame.

A free deck bird feeder tray to the one who posts the best photo "they" take of one. This is a nice, handy little feeder as TnRabbit can attest to.

[kingman R.I.P.]

What Sir Elton got from his "Life Partner" ....

[AgentOrange]

Had a Hummingbird here the last two days.
In SC and most of the east coast, the only Hummer is the Ruby Throat.

During migration birds get blown off (lost) or WTF and end up where they don't belong. This is the 4th time at my house in the last 11 years. Not sure yet what this one is, but my first guess is a Rufus female. I'll get a photo if shows tomorrow. They can be hard to ID without one. Males, females and first year birds all look different.

Here is a Ruby Throat female photo I took. As you can see, no "red throat":
Attachment 924

Here is a fun Rufus I took last year as he landed and wings were still going. I think the one here now is a Rufus, but with binos through the window in a quick glance, might be a Buff which would be a new bird for me - very exciting!
Attachment 925

I take all my feeders in when the Ruby Throats leave in mid October, but leave out a couple and at least one all year. A few birds seem to be glad I do that.

[AgentOrange]

My lonely Rufus Hummingbird is still here.

[TNRabbit R.I.P.]

Maybe he doesn't like traveling alone....

[AgentOrange]

Maybe he doesn't like traveling alone....

HA HA--

Actually he traveled here alone. East of the Mississippi, we all have "JUST" the Ruby Throat.
Every year, a few of these Rufus forget their GPS and end up in SE USA instead of Latin America. That is not too good.

I will care for him as best I can. He will most likely be OK now that he has found a Winter food source (me). A better plan would be to head South, but he might not.

This is the reason I keep at least one fresh HB feeder out all year for the last 20 years.
Now I have 4 out.
My yard has been crushed by Fall cold, but I still have lots of flowers, mainly Roses, Camellias, Azaleas, Violas, Pansies.

Photos from this week:
Attachment 982Attachment 983