RUBY-THROATED
HUMMINGBIRD
#HUM-400
Notecards Only
Also available in Notecard Assortment Packs #AST-405
& #AST-505
Often
first detected by the dull, droning hum made by buzzing wings,
ruby-throated hummingbirds are commonly seen in gardens and open
forest areas. The males are iridescent green above, mostly white
below, with an iridescent red throat and forked tail. Females
lack the red throat and have blunt tails with white spots. Ruby-throats
weigh about the same as a new penny and are 3 to 3-3/4 inches
long.
Hummingbirds
can fly forward and backward or straight up and down. They can
also hover, and are able to drink flower nectar without actually
landing on the blossom. The flowers they drink from are usually
long, tubular and orange or red. Their long slender tongue can
be extended beyond the tip of the bill with the edges rolled in
to form a double tube for sucking nectar.
During
nesting season you won’t see much of the female hummingbird.
After the chicks hatch, they need protein to grow, not sugar,
so their mother spends most of her time catching small insects
and small spiders for them.
In
the mid-Atlantic region, ruby-throats begin to arrive in April
after food plants are blooming. Departure time in September corresponds
with the end of the blooming season for all food plants. In the
fall, hummers migrate south to Central America where they spend
the winter.
Text © 1999 Dianne Harrah, Drawing ©
1999 Bill Harrah
.
. . BACKYARD BIRDS . . . (Click on an image to
see the actual notecard size)