Friday, March 20, 2015

Hummingbird Babies!


We are proud to announce the arrival of twins.
They hatched early this morning (Friday).
Mom hummer and her babies are all doing fine.
She is working continuously to keep them fed and protected in their nest.

Approximate size of a baby hummingbird:
-- Length - about an inch
-- Weight - a little over half a gram (3 baby hummers = the weight of one US dime)

For 2-1/2 weeks we have been using the field scope set up in our dining room, to watch mom hummer sitting on the nest. This morning for the first time we saw her perched on the edge of the nest, as she fed each baby in turn. Her head bobs up and down in a sewing machine-like motion as she transfers the pre-digested food into their gaping mouths. After each feeding she settles back in to the nest to keep the babies warm. The babies are very tiny now, and their naked heads barely show above the edge of the nest as they are feeding.

Hummingbird babies need protein to grow - they cannot survive on just nectar or hummingbird food. The food that mom hummer regurgitates for them includes small insects that she catches in flight. We see her in the backyard zig-zagging through the air as she chases their next meal, or searches plants and spider webs for insects.


This is an excellent information source, for everything you could want to know about hummingbirds:
http://www.worldofhummingbirds.com




No comments:

Post a Comment