Hummingbird antics pique my interest in Las Vegas NV – other birds and butterflies, too.

I just have to keep my camera with me at all times here in Las Vegas. I never know when a hummingbird is going to do something interesting.

This morning I was going to look at the north side feeder. The thought crossed my mind that I needed to carry my camera with me. Fortunately I followed that impulse. When I walked up to where I could see the feeder through the window I had to use it fast. There was a hummingbird taking a bath in the ant moat and I got its picture!

Head down gathering water on it bill from the ant moat

He sat at the side of the ant moat, which I fill before dawn every morning, and stuck his bill in. Then he used the bill to transfer the water to his body. He fluffed his wings and shook his body and then went in for more. I’ve seen this activity once before, but didn’t have my camera ready. I was so excited that I had camera in hand this time, even if I did have to take the pictures through the bug screen.

Fluffing up to spread the water, note the drops on his bill.

The north side feeder hasn’t been seeing as much feeding activity as it did earlier. I still see hummers feeding there and I still see high speed chases around it. Yet I know that feeding is down because I don’t have to replace the sweet water as often. Now, instead of having a nearly empty feeder to clean and add to, I have to dump some old feed in order to freshen the supply. The west side feeder still goes down to almost empty, but even it doesn’t have to be added to as often as it did earlier.

A young male feeding at the south side feeder.

The south side feeder has to be completely filled more than once a day. And it is totally empty when I get to it. However, it isn’t strictly hummingbirds’ feeding that lowers it so fast. Because it is a drip type feeder, rather than a reservoir feeder, it attracts the finches and other sweet loving birds.

As a finch comes to feed, the Verdin, who was there first, pulls away.

This feeder has bee-guards which also act to deter the large-billed birds, but the finches took care of that problem. Almost every time I went out to check the feeder I had to replace one or more of the guards. At first I figured they were loose and just fell off due to the movement of the feeder. Then I noticed that the little yellow guards were falling farther and farther from the feeder. I finally realized that the finches were actually pulling the guard off and throwing it away. With that, I gave up. Now one of stations is permanently without a guard. That yellow grill is sitting in my kitchen.

The Verdin goes head down to drink sweet water

The little Verdin, who first came to look for bugs, has now become a sweet eater, too. I am guessing (maybe all wrong) that it is the same individual who first came as a fledgling, but now has its adult colors.

Verdin shows his adult colors, rust color epaulet and yellow tinted face.

I still miss out on pictures because I don’t have my camera with me at all time. Last evening I was out watering my plants on the back patio. I was holding the sprinkler can over the Spider Plant when a young male hummer came to see what I was doing. He hovered right in front of my face, no more than six inches away. I didn’t dare move, but I heard me fly by the side of my head and hover there. Of course I have no picture of that. I need Google Glasses to keep up with the birds’ antics here in Las Vegas NV.

Two hummingbirds tolerate each other in Las Vegas NV – one in the bush, one on the perch

Yes, there really are two hummingbirds in the picture.

                There are times that one hummer will let another be within his territory – for awhile – even here at Las Vegas feeders. Of course they are young ones and still somewhat social but it’s not the norm.

                One evening I was sitting out on the patio enjoying the evening. Temperatures were in the mid 90s but it felt comfortable with no blazing sun. I was watching the hummers come to the feeders. One young male sat on the perch at the feeder and drank. Then he dived into the neighboring Mock Orange bush. I have seen hummers do this numerous times. Usually they go into the bush or to the side where I cannot see them. This one was different. He landed at the edge of the bush. I knew where he was but he was so small and well camouflaged that I couldn’t spot him. The zoom on the camera picked him out without a problem. I snapped a couple of pictures, delighted that I finally had one in the bush.

Without the zoom I couldn't see him.

                A second young male came to the feeder. I anticipated the first would come bombing out of the bush and send him on his way, pronto. No, I waited in vain. No attack came. Then I began to wonder if the second bird was really my first, returning for another drink. I used the zoom to look. The first was still sitting in the bush.

The second hummer.

                I figured I have better move fast. I reduced the zoom and took a picture, wasting no time. I couldn’t be sure I had even gotten both birds in the picture. When I looked at the screen I couldn’t see the one in the bush. I could only hope. (After I downloaded the picture onto my computer I could see it better on the larger screen. Yes, both birds were in the photo.)

                Then of course the magic moment was past. The first bird spotted the second and off they went. They flew back and forth across the yard, just inches above the grass, until one of them flew over the wall and off to other food sources.

If you didn't spot the other hummer here is the same picture marked.

                I don’t know which was the vanquished and which the victor. I will assume the first was the winner, but I can only guess and wait for more action at my feeders here in Las Vegas.

               

Hummingbirds choose the same tree in Las Vegas NV – and I thought there was one

                Silly me! I fell for it again. I thought since I saw the same hummingbird in the same tree day-after-day, when I saw a hummingbird in the same tree another day, it was the same bird. Of course, isn’t that just logical?

Same perch, same bird, taken 9-5-2014

                I took a picture of my immature hummer on August 26 on a dead limb. On September 5, I took another picture of the same bird on the same perch. The only reason I could identify it was because it was an immature. If you are dealing with mature hummingbirds, or females, all bets are off because they all look the same. Immatures, on the other hand, seem to have a unique pattern to their molt, which allows for some confidence in identifying individuals. Notice I am hedging a bit – quite a bit – since there is still a lot of guess work involved. Unless you actually band the bird and can read the number on the band, there is no way of being entirely sure you are seeing the same bird.

Off he goes after an insect.

                This particular bird not only looked the same but it also acted the same. He frequented the same perch, exactly the same perch, just a foot or so above the ground. From there he went fly catching and chasing intruders.

                My logic was: one bird, one perch; one perch, one tree; therefore, same tree, same bird.

                On September 6, I was again sitting out on my patio enjoying the evening when I saw my hummingbird sitting in his tree. This time he had selected a higher branch. I should have been suspicious, but no, my logic still held: same tree, different perch, it’s still the same bird. I snapped its picture several times. One was when he was watching for insects, another while in his whistling stance.

Whistling stance

Same tree, different perch, different bird

                The monitor on my camera is small, hummingbirds are really small, and until I downloaded the pictures onto my computer I couldn’t really tell what I had. Once I saw what I had taken a picture of, I knew I had fallen for illogical thinking. It’s not same tree, different perch, same bird. It’s same tree, different perch, different bird!

                Oh well, I have photographic proof of the error of my ways. I am sure it won’t be the last time I fall for poor logic, whether concerning birds or life. At least birds keep me humble. Maybe they’ll help me in life as well.