Birds are arriving for the summer. I put the test-tube hummingbird feeder out on the deck two weeks ago. This is a feeder small enough that I can tell if a hummer has been by for even a sip - a good feeder to give an indication when to put out the larger feeders.
There was no interest in it until last weekend when WS and I both were out on the deck and a we heard a hummer. We both froze and a male drank the nectar conncoction for 45-60 seconds straight then flew off to a tree to rest. Evidently he was a traveler on his way to somewhere else as the feeder went down only a little more that morning, then was quiet for a couple of days. A couple of times during the week, the feeder was hit, once again, evidently by travelers.
Then yesterday morning I changed the feeder and put another test-tube feeder out front by the lilacs. I saw a male hummer at the feeder on the deck a couple of times, and heard a hummer at the front feeder a couple of times (while I was planting and mulching in that area). I was unsure if they were travelers or locals coming home for the summer.
This morning, while feeding and watering Fuzzy, I looked at the feeder on the deck and it has been hit very hard. Either we fed a lot of travelers since yesterday afternoon, or some of the locals are back. I'm guessing the latter.
Along with hummers, I have spotted two male red-breasted grosbeaks at the feeders for the last week. They don't seem happy that another male is around, but eventually quit sqawiking and hissing at each other to settle down for a meal.
I've heard cardinals around also, but I haven't seen any. We do have lots of fat robins around and the honeybees are buzzing in the flowers - sounding furius, but actually being excited by the abundance of flowers in both pots and in the yard.
I love the sights and sounds of all these reminders of spring arriving!
Comments