When you see him up-close he looks rather menacing.
But striking fear is no small feat for a bird that weighs the equivalent of a couple coins…two cents. He’s fast, alert and always on guard
for his enemies. Darting, dodging and dipping through flowers, he carefully evaluates
where to stick his beak before choosing a blossom.
He prefers red flowers and all the flowers in his blossom claim belong solely to him. This Ruby-throated Hummingbird has a greedy
streak when it comes to food. He
is not into sharing. Other male
hummingbirds are not welcome and are quickly turned upon. Fights occur whenever another male
intrudes upon his territory and the strongest wins…there will be no sharing.
His aggressive nature is directed towards females, too, although females are gradually
and grudgingly accepted.
The slightly larger female lacks the iridescent throat of
the male, but she shares a similar blue-green iridescent backside. His beautifully bejeweled throat undoubtedly impresses her. She
chooses a male after an elaborate courting display, including acrobatic flying,
sunlit throat displays and steep dives at her.
Nectar is not enough for a Ruby-throated Hummingbird to
survive upon, so insects fulfill his protein requirements. He can pluck a mosquito from the air or
hover at a web to relieve a spider of her catch. He would dine on the spider, too, if she were silly enough to
stick around.
Small feats of
intimidation serve the Ruby-throated Hummingbird well. He is the most
prolific hummingbird east of the Rocky Mountains.
As for his actual real live
feet, he can’t walk very well…tiny
feet. He prefers to fly
everywhere.
Allan
