I have 2 hummingbird feeders in the garden. One is hung on a shepherd's crook, the other I sat on a wooden box in the garden proper.
I found out the one on the box, is needing to be hung on something, too, we have a multi-lane freeway of sugar ants that get into it... Bleah. So I moved it to a different spot temporarily.
The next morning, when I was watering, I heard the familiar buzz of one of the hummers coming in for breakfast. Zzzzzzzip, then a sudden stop in midair. The poor thing looked back and forth, totally confused, his sippy cup was missing! I stood still, and soon enough, he saw where I'd put it. But, if a very small bird can look dumbfounded, I saw it!
Hummingbirds in this area are mostly this kind, a red-throated hummer, and I have been watching this lovely one that goes to the hanging feeder. It always gives me a quick once over when I am there, then goes to the feeder and drinks. I don't know why it gives me a quick eyeball, but I am glad it does. It has the most dazzling DARK PINK feathers on it's throat. I don't know that I have seen that shade on a hummingbird before. So we get to look each other over really well!
When I walk out to the garden, I have been hearing a tapping and scratching. Took me a bit to figure out what it is... A bird, a Lazuli Bunting specifically, has found a mortal enemy...
His reflection in one of our milk house windows. I have seen him swat, nip, fly at, attack and peck at the image he sees. I worry the little guy is going to hurt himself. I keep wondering if I could find some stick on cat images, or something, to dissuade the stinker from doing that. I am not worried about the window that much, but as angry as the little Romeo is, I keep wondering if he will do himself some damage. But, still, every morning, scratch, peck, scratch, scratch, scratch!
I am hoping to get a seed type bird feeder set up somewhere near the garden, we have goldfinches around, and I think they are so pretty. The various varieties of bird we have around are neat to listen to, but they tend to be variations on grey, black and white. Not this shining ball of yellow! Maybe it's because I am usually not moving fast in the garden, but I have more than once seen a goldfinch sit somewhere about 3-5 feet from me, and just watch. Occasionally chirping, I don't know if it's comment or criticism, but they have a long and varied 'chirp', so I find it a nice thing...
There are several other birds in the area, crows, ravens, chickadees, robins, the occasional vulture, egrets, geese, and probably more that I haven't thought of... But if you like bird watching, my garden seems to be as good a place as any!
1 comment:
Birds are amazing, and i love the idea of a hummingbird looking dumbfounded. One lady where we live put up a feeder at a corner of the house, and one hummer defended it against all comers, so she put up a second, and he tried defending both. A third did not dissuade him, neither did a fourth! She thought he was going to kill himself trying to defend all fhe feeders from every other hummer that came along, on all four corners of the house, so she had to remove them.
If you do put up a seed feeder, prepare to watch and enjoy, and if it's a squirrel proof feeder, prepare to watch them figure out how to get into it anyway.
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