Black-chinned Hummingbird
Patton Center for Hummingbirds, Patagonia, Arizona, USA
July 2019
Member of the Hummingbird Family
§A Tune of Hummingbirds§
~true bird fact~ Ok, let's say we take these bird at face value, and assume they are not robots or fairies, but instead are living non-magical creatures. How do these hummingbirds eat, exactly? Well, they flick out their nightmarish tongue into a source of nectar, and that nectar travels along (in a Black-chinned) two grooves in it. The hummingbird then slurps the tongue back into its mouth and squeezes the nectar out. These licks are so fast that they can happen as often as 17 times each second. And I thought I ate fast!
~An additional hummingbird fact~ A hummingbird egg is about the size of a coffee bean, but the nestlings grow quickly. In fact, they grow so much that young birds become larger than their parents. Since a hummingbird nest is made partly out of spider silk, and the birds involved are so light, the nest can just stretch and expand to accommodate this growth.
Proud atheist
Loves esoteric and complex board games
Pipe smoker
Well, I hinted at it in the last blog, but I guess now that I've posted an actual feeder pic, the jig is up. I prefer to get images of hummingbirds in their natural habitat when possible, but the opportunities provided at Tucson Audubon's Patton Center for Hummingbirds are too great to pass up. It is a really cool, extremely off-the-beaten path birding spot, and unique in its ability to draw hummingbirds. There were also some really lovely and helpful volunteers on the day that I visited. Check it out if you're in the area, or even online, where there are live hummingbird cams. Did I see the legendary Violet-crowned Hummingbird they are so well known for? Maybe! No really, I mean literally maybe, I don't know if the bird I got a picture of is the Violet-crowned. But I guess you'll be able to judge for yourself soon, on this very blog.
