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Posts Tagged: hummingbird
What You May Not Know About Hummingbirds
Pollinators aren't just bees, butterflies, beetles and bats. They're also birds, like hummingbirds. Ornithologists tell us that hummingbirds can...
Hummingbirds eat insects and insects eat hummingbirds. Here a praying mantis lurks by a hummingbird feeder. It was quickly removed to another spot. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A hummingbird flies in for a quick burst of energy. It is best not to use red dye in a feeder; some companies make hummingbird feeders with red glass. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Surprising Research Results: What the Microbes in Nectar Revealed
It's surprising what the microbes in nectar can reveal. Take the nectar of the sticky monkeyflower, Mimulus auranticus. UC Davis community...
Researchers studied the microbes in the nectar of the sticky monkeyflower, Mimulus auranticus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Watch Out!
The hummingbirds seemed apprehensive. They'd fly to the feeder, stop in mid-air, and turn back. What was keeping them from the feeder? A closer...
A praying mantis is sprawled out on a hummingbird feeder, as a hummer takes a drink. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The praying mantis moves to another spot. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Silhouette of the praying mantis lying in wait. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Will Hummingbird Syrup Harm the Bees?
It's no secret that honey bees like the sugar/water mixture in hummingbird feeders. If there's no bee guard on the feeder or if the feeder isn't...
A honey bee sipping syrup from a hummingbird feeder. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A hummingbird pauses in between sips. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Rest Stop at the Arrol-Metz House
One of my favorite things in the garden is getting to watch the hummingbirds. I enjoy watching them travel from flower to flower, trying a little nectar here, and then a little nectar there. I love it when the sunlight reflects off their throat patch, giving it that ruby glow. I am impressed by their moxie. They don't seem afraid of creatures much larger than they are. I love their chirrupy call and the sound their wings make. I've been watching them for years, so I thought I'd seen pretty much everything ...
Until a few mornings ago, I went to my window and saw a hummingbird going from grape leaf to grape leaf. I was really puzzled as I knew there were not any flowers on the vine, and only two clusters of grapes on that vine. As I got closer I saw he was rubbing himself on the leaf, then ducking his head and throwing back his shoulders, all while his little wings were just whirring away. He did this on several leaves, before it finally dawned on me what was going on. The sprinklers had just finished running and the grape leaves were sheeted with water. The hummer was cleaning himself in the water on the leaves, and seemed to be having a grand time.
He also seems to think that the tomato cages have been put out for his convenience to perch on and rest in between checking out gladiola blossoms. Hey, I am always happy to be of service.
