Life in the Fast Lane This is MY Space!
• Size: Hummingbirds are the smallest birds in • Male hummingbirds defend territories that the world! They are found only in the are rich in food sources. Americas. • To defend territories, males use warning • Feet: Hummingbirds belong to bird order sounds, flash the iridescent feathers on Apodiformes which means “without feet”: their gorget and crown, and physically hummingbirds and swifts have small, weak attack the intruder. These are feisty birds! feet and legs. They can grip and perch but Foraging for Nectar • The male’s display involves a steep climb cannot walk or turn around. upward and then rapid dive down towards • Wings: Hummingbird wings beat in a side- • Hummingbirds are mostly nectivores (eat the ground. The shape of dive is species- ways “figure 8” which allows them to fly flower nectar) but also eat any insect or specific such as Anna’s “J- shape” and forward & backward, sideways, up & down, spider it can swallow. Black-chinned’s “U-shape”. hover in place, and even upside down! • High metabolism means they need to eat a • The “pop” sound at the bottom of display • Torpor: Hummingbirds lower their body lot; hummingbirds feed every 10-15 minutes. is created by special shape of tail feathers. temperature and heart rate to conserve • Hummingbirds lap up nectar instead of It is not a vocalization. energy when there is not enough food or sucking. Capillary action moves nectar up • Female hummingbirds select territories temperatures are too cold. They reawaken in the tongue’s grooves into its mouth. with good quality nesting sites. less than an hour. • Hummingbird-pollinated plants have thick
• Heartbeat: Hummingbird hearts vary from 50 flowers with a tubular shape and no scent. beats/minute during torpor to 250 beats/minute • Hummingbird-pollinated plants deposit at rest and 1,250 beats/minute while flying! pollen in a specific place on a humming- • Tongue: Their tongue is long and grooved. It bird’s head to increase cross-pollination. can extend beyond the bill tip and wraps • Trap-lining: Hummingbirds visit flower around the base of the skull. patches in a certain sequence during their • Flashing colors: Iridescence on the tips of daily rounds. Nectar reforms between visits.
feathers on the throat (gorget) and crown of • They can visit 1,000-2,000 flowers per day. male hummingbirds create a flash of color Migration and Hazards when the bird, observer, and sun are properly aligned. Iridescence is formed not from Foraging for Insects • Many North American hummingbird species winter south of the USA-Mexican pigments but physical characteristics within • Insects and spiders are an important part of the feather that amplify certain wavelengths border. In Orange County, Anna’s and a hummingbird’s diet. Allen’s are year-round residents. of light (purple, red, orange, etc). • Catch insects by hawking: Hummingbirds • Dangers include collision with windows perch and watch for flying insect, then fly and outdoor cats. We can protect out to capture the prey. hummingbirds by preventing these hazards. • Catch insects and spiders by gleaning: For information about preventing window Hummingbirds hover and pick prey off plants. strikes, go to • Anna’s Hummingbirds feed at sapsucker (a https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/why-birds- woodpecker) wells on sap and insects. hit-windows-and-how-you-can-help-prevent-it/
Orange County Species Smallest Nest in the World
• Anna’s • A hummingbird nest is the smallest nest in Hummingbird: the world! • Abundant, year-round, • The nest is cup-shaped on top of a thin breeder. Found in a branch and lined with soft material (e.g., Hummingbirds of diversity of habitats. sycamore leaf fuzz) and held together with spider webs. Lichen or bark may be used on the outside of the nest for camouflage. Orange County Allen’s • Some hummingbirds re-use nests while Hummingbird: others recycle materials from old nests. Common, year-round, • The female does everything: nest- breeder. Found along building, incubating eggs, and caring for the coast and inland the young. areas. • Females usually lay two white eggs.
Black-chinned Hummingbird: Common, summer, breeder. Found in woodlands.
Costa’s Hummingbird:
Common, summer, breeder. Found in coastal sage scrub and Explore the life of hummingbirds chaparral habitats. through the fun facts and photographs in
this brochure. From torpor and gorget to
Calliope Find the lichen on this nest. trap-lining and hawking, these beautiful Hummingbird: birds of the air have interesting Rare spring migrant. adaptations and behaviors for their very Feeding Hummingbirds fast lifestyle. How many can you find? To attract hummingbirds to your OC yard, plant Happy hummingbird watching! Broad-billed locally native plants such as penstemons, Hummingbird: California fuchsia, and island snapdragon. Only a few county You can also use a sugar water feeder by mixing Prepared by Trude Hurd, Project Director of records in fall and a ratio of one-part table sugar dissolved in four- Education, Sea and Sage Audubon Society, 2021. winter. parts water, do not use food coloring, and Photographs by Trude Hurd used with permission. change it often (daily in hot weather).