A very early
Rufous Hummingbirdwas banded on August 11th in Whitesburg, Georgia. We don't usually get reports of these visitors from the west until November, so bander Julia Elliott was super excited! While she was skeptical at first, photos showed the bird's tail pretty clearly and the bright rusty-orange color gave him away. This was not a record early date for this species in Georgia, but it came pretty close!
Keep your eyes open for any unusual looking hummers and report them to one of our stores, or call the
Hummer Hotline at
770-784-1636
The Bird Watcheris also seeing more hummingbirds at his feeders, and he gives some great tips for watching them and also gauging how much nectar they are drinking in his latest blog post.
Click Hereto read about unexpected uses for blue painter's tape, and to make yourself feel better about your own obsession with hummingbirds!
Our favorite way to figure out how many hummers you are actually feeding involves simple math. During the late summer and fall,
count the number of birds you can see at any one time and multiply that by SIX.
So if you can see 20 birds in the yard at once, you actually have closer to 120! Banding studies have shown this to be a very effective way to count hummingbirds! And now you know how they are emptying your feeders so quickly!!!
