10 pounds of sugar NDR

[Al Hansen]

Bev and I have found out that 10 lbs. of sugar doesn't last very long right now. We have somewhere around 300 to 400 hummers in the area and are now going through 2 gallons of nectar a day.

To give you an idea of the movement of the hummers, here are some pictures taken in less than 2 seconds when looking at two of our feeders.

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I decided to go over next to one of the feeders and stand as close to it as I could without scaring the hummers. My nose is about 4 inches from the plastic coated wire that the hummers sit on. While standing there I had one hummer fly between the feeder and me. I could feel the wind on my face from its wings. They seemed to show no fear. While having so much fun there, I hadn't realized that Bev picked up the camera and started to take pictures.
Al

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In the morning I took Chip and Serrano for a ride. Since we have been getting some rain now, I wanted to see if there was any water in the Rio Grande since it has been totally dry for a few days.

Notice the quizzical look on Chip's face. He is not quite sure of what he is looking at behind me.

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Yes, that is "real" water flowing in the Rio Grande. Come on duck season!

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[bruce horning]

some awesome shots there,al.

thanks for sharing them.

bruce

 

[Rick L]

Al;

my wife loves these pictures - she is thrilled when she get two hummingbirds on her feeder at the same time here in the northeast

 

[Keith Bittner]

Al those are amazing hummer pictures. Would you mind sending some of those pictures to a man how is having a legal problem with the private hummingbird santuary that he has out here in Long Island? I will email him to see if he would like the pictures. Thanks Keith

 

[Doug Bowman]

Nice swarm of Hummers Al!

The only thing I have swarming here are flys. LOL

Good to see you have water again too!

 

[wis boz]

Al
Your cap overfillet
wis boz

 

[charlie foulds]

Great Shots>>!!!!!

I love hummers,,,, }

 

[Steve Sutton]

Al...good to see the River flowing....and the hummers flocking to the feeders...Hummingbirds inland and Shorebirds on the beaches are always the first indicators that the "BIG SHOW" has started to me.....In Washington we had mostly Rufuous and right about now we'd be feeding a gallon of nectar a day as the males started moving South just as the last of the hatchlings fledged.....its one of the things I'll miss once we're back in Florida where the occasional RubyThroat is the best we can hope for....


Shorebirds are on the move on the beaches......little knots of birds on the beaches that weren't there last weeks....small flocks streaming south just outside the breakers...Males and non-breeding females getting a head start on the young of the year....still so hot the Hippo's don't come out of the wallows even at night...high summer with temps reaching the high 90's....migration to most people still months away.....look close though....the first Pintails will be in the salt marsh by mid August...before the oft presumed "early Teal".....


The Big Show has begun......




Steve

 

[Jeffrey Nelson]

Al, Absolutely amazing! It's hard to believe the number of hummingbirds. I was wondering how close you were getting to them when taking the pictures. As close as you want, I see! It's like National Geographic on your porch. I've only seen a handful in my entire life. Jeff

 

[Al Hansen]

some awesome shots there,al.

thanks for sharing them.

bruce

I'm glad you liked them, Bruce. They give us a tremendous amount of enjoyment each year.
Al

 

[Al Hansen]

Al;

my wife loves these pictures - she is thrilled when she get two hummingbirds on her feeder at the same time here in the northeast

Hi Rick,
Some day take the time to check out the migration path those hummers make that come into your area. It is amazing. Then when you consider their size it will leave you scratching your head wondering how---
Al

 

[Al Hansen]

Al those are amazing hummer pictures. Would you mind sending some of those pictures to a man how is having a legal problem with the private hummingbird santuary that he has out here in Long Island? I will email him to see if he would like the pictures. Thanks Keith

Keith,
I'm glad you got my PM. I'm glad you enjoyed those pictures.
Al

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[Al Hansen]

Nice swarm of Hummers Al!

The only thing I have swarming here are flys. LOL

Good to see you have water again too!

Thanks, Doug, Now are you sure you haven't seen a swarm of mallards up there once upon a time? I just checked the Rio Grande's flow chart and found out it went from 457cfs to 3,800cfs almost instantly. Glad I wasn't hunkered down looking at my decoys when that wall of water appeared!
Al

 

[Al Hansen]

Al
Your cap overfillet
wis boz

Hi Jim,
I have always been fortunate. When I chose this area to live in, I had not a clue about Bosque del Apache NWR being just 8 miles from our home. I had no idea of what the hunting was like around here, either. Now to toss into this wonderful mix some hummers that give me pure pleasure for 6 months of the year, this is just another reason why we like it so much down here. I chose this spot for three reasons only; A. they had little snow and if it did snow it usually was gone within 24 hours. B. We live in the country surrounded by hard working farmers in a rural setting. I was raised in such a setting. C. The beauty of the high desert is mind blowing.
Jim, it is easy to smile every morning when I walk outside to begin my day.
Al

 

[Al Hansen]

Great Shots>>!!!!!

I love hummers,,,, }

Thanks so much, Charlie. So do I!
Al

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[Al Hansen]

Al...good to see the River flowing....and the hummers flocking to the feeders...Hummingbirds inland and Shorebirds on the beaches are always the first indicators that the "BIG SHOW" has started to me.....In Washington we had mostly Rufuous and right about now we'd be feeding a gallon of nectar a day as the males started moving South just as the last of the hatchlings fledged.....its one of the things I'll miss once we're back in Florida where the occasional RubyThroat is the best we can hope for....

Shorebirds are on the move on the beaches......little knots of birds on the beaches that weren't there last weeks....small flocks streaming south just outside the breakers...Males and non-breeding females getting a head start on the young of the year....still so hot the Hippo's don't come out of the wallows even at night...high summer with temps reaching the high 90's....migration to most people still months away.....look close though....the first Pintails will be in the salt marsh by mid August...before the oft presumed "early Teal".....


The Big Show has begun......




Steve

Thanks so much, Steve. You are so right about the Big Show having begun.

I enjoyed reading what you had to say. Every year around the middle of July is when we begin to see our first male rufous hummers that would come from your old area in Washington. They remind me so much of the bluewing teal because the adult males are the first to come through here, followed by the juvenile birds, then finally the females. Almost exactly the same. Down here, just like you mentioned we get large flocks of male pintails before the Teal arrive.
Al

 

[Al Hansen]

Al, Absolutely amazing! It's hard to believe the number of hummingbirds. I was wondering how close you were getting to them when taking the pictures. As close as you want, I see! It's like National Geographic on your porch. I've only seen a handful in my entire life. Jeff

Good morning, Jeff. I have often thought that if I had to do it all over again especially with my love for the hummingbirds, I would be living in the southeastern portion of Arizona or the bootheel of New Mexico. There you will see 12 or more varieties and in numbers that would dazzle your mind. However, since duck hunting is also a part of me, I am fine just where I am.
Al

She, the praying mantis, was back on the same flower as the day before when she took this juvenile blackchinned hummer out of mid air and then consumed it. When I got to my friend's flower garden I was lucky enough to find the carcass of the hummer. She had seen this whole event the day before.

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If you look at the size of the female praying mantis's abdomen you can see that she is almost ready to lay her eggs now. Who would have thought that the hummer would have to watch out for an insect? Since observing them down here I have learned a lot about this amazing phenomenon.

 

[John Canavari]

Great pictures!