Humdinger 1: The Movie

amazingwomenrock.com creator & curator @AmazingSusan filmed this amazing action-packed feeding frenzy at her Mom's backyard hummingbird feeder where anywhere up to a dozen "hummers" visit in waves. These are Ruby Throated Hummingbirds: the males sport ruby throats, which the females lack. Both male and females have iridescent green backs. They make high squeaky sounds, and fiercely defend their territories. When hovering, hummingbirds hold their bodies upright and flap their wings horizontally in a shallow figure-eight. As the wings swing back they tilt flat for a moment before the wings are drawn. Most hummingbirds flap their wings about 50 or so times a second - all we see (as you can see for yourself in the video!) is a blur. When defending their territory they fan their tail feathers and "face off" sometimes flying upwards together in a high-speed spiral. The males also display to the females by flying repeatedly in large arcs in front of them. Fascinating and joyful to watch.

Rudy, a male ruby throated hummingbird, flew into our house (he was being chased by another hummingbird) and injured his entire right side. The injury occurred Friday July 9th. After about 24 hours he started to regain use of his right foot, but not his right wing. In about 1 week, he was able to open and close his injured wing. Today, August 14th, he has about 60% range of motion and is trying to fly (a big improvement). The question is, will he be recovered enough to fly off by August 31st? Both our Veterinarian and "Hummingbird Rehabilitator" tell us that Rudy needs about 1 month of local flying time to build up his strength prior to migration. In East Tennessee, migration to Central America occurs about the end of September. You should know it is illegal to keep a hummingbird (or any song bird) in captivity unless you have a license to do so. We are providing Rudy a safe place to recover (an open box on our covered and open porch), and a proper diet. He is free to fly away anytime, thus he is not captive. If Rudy doesn't fly away soon, we'll need to try and find him a winter home (aviary or a licensed wildlife rehab center). We are told that the chances of an aviary taking a hummingbird that can not fly are pretty slim. Hopefully, Rudy will fly away soon and avoid the obvious dilemma we face on August 31st.
Video Rating: 4 / 5