The Hummingbird Journey
So here goes my first attempt at a blog. I've toiled with it for a year, I love to write but with everything I have going on in my life right now, what could I actually write about. Then all of a sudden the little bugger hit me, literally. Standing next to the hummingbird feeder, "The Protector", as I call him, hit me in the back of the head. Basically his way of stating that I was too close for his comfort. Now I have had arguments with this guy on several occasions, including last night. So as I'm standing there having a discussion with him it dawned on me that this could be something worth sharing with the world.
Past to Present
Growing up I can remember sitting at my grandmother's kitchen window watching the hummingbirds in the mornings as they hovered around the feeders. Over the years I would hear that distinct humming sound and instinctively look for them.
Now over the past 15 years, I've moved around a lot, so I've never really been able to just settle into one place for very long. However, in the past 5 years, I've come as close to settling down as I could. In 2015 I discovered that I had 2 hummingbirds that would kind of hand around with me while I was doing my morning chores. So with that discovery I bought a glass feeder and some nectar.
Over the next couple of days I watched these beautiful birds in order to find an appropriate place to hang the feeder. Due to having several barn cats, I decided to hang the feeder on the front porch, which was where I would sit in the mornings and drink my coffee and watch the sunrise.
Unfortunately, this feeder lasted about 2 months. Note for anyone living on the prairie/plains or windy areas, make sure your feeder is hung securely. I learned a great deal as to the quality and type of various feeders on the market. Also learned that the plastic feeders don't last if hung in the direct sun. The glass feeders are much easier to clean.
Migration...with me?
In 2016 I moved twice more, landing at a small remote ranch during the end of 2016 where I was lucky enough to be able to watch approximately 8 hummingbirds. With that many of them I decided to add several more feeders (4 total).
I had identified a few as being the black-chinned hummingbird. I discovered that one of the males was very dominant and territorial of the main feeder. There appeared to be some type of hierarchy with the females as well. Unfortunately, I had to make an unexpected move during the fall of 2018.
So with spring and summer quickly approaching, hopefully I will have some visitors of the beautiful and small variety. These magnificent little creatures have been the light on my dark days, so with fingers crossed, I will keep my eyes and ears open and my feeders filled.