COMMENTS FROM OBSERVERS AROUND NEW ENGLAND

Nancy Dodge, of Stewartstown, NH, wrote on 5/19:

"More males came in all day 5/13, and many females 5/16...It gets pretty wild around here before and after nesting. The man from the gas company is terrified of ALL birds, and when he came to paint the propane tank I was afraid I’d have a 911 case on my hands! A man putting shingles on my barn got one in the face and it startled him so he dropped his pipe."

Jim Porter, West Greenwich, RI, reported on 5/17 that "We currently have what appears to be two mated pairs of ruby-throats visiting our single feeder. The males constantly quarrel over the territory, but nothing seems to bother the females when they visit." Denise Peloquin in Gloucester, MA also shared her yard with 2 m and 2 f hummers by 5/16."They zip around so quickly that it is hard to tell just how many there are, but I did get good looks at two pairs resting in the same maple sapling!"

Edith Tucker of Randolph Valley, NH, had her first male hummer on May 11. She writes: "We’re at 1,300 feet….just on the north side of the Presidential Range. We’ve had hummers other summers."

Steve Sauter of Ashfield, MA, 1,400’ elevation, had his first male hummer on 5/03/03, and Christine Costello, of Jackson, NH, 1000’ elevation, had a male hummingbird at her feeder on 5/07.

Scott Morrical, of Burlington, VT, wrote to VTBird on 5/13 that "Our first female Ruby-throated Hummingbird showed up this morning at our feeder, exactly one week after our first male showed up. This one-week separation is about average over 10 years of observations at this address."

And Jane Hills, of Manchester, NH, had her first male 5/03 and her first female 5/11, exactly 1 week later.(NH Birds) This one-week delay between male and female arrivals seems to be a widespread experience, but there are also reports, especially from southern New England, of male and female arriving just a few days apart, or even on the same day.

For example, Dorian De Simone and Tracy Newell, of South Kingstown, RI, on Indian Lake, saw the FIRST reported female hummer in New England this year on April 30, even before they saw a male! They write, "We observed the female at a hummingbird feeder located only a few feet from our house, through binoculars and then a spotting scope! We wondered if it wasn’t a transient bird, on its way north, since we’ve normally observed only males arriving first in past years. We subsequently saw two males the same day."

Shortly thereafter, Jim Porter in West Greenwich, RI saw a female on May 2, and Nancy Harvey of Charlestown, RI saw one on May 3.

Mark Suomala, of Epsom, NH, saw a hummingbird flying over the boat on a birding trip out to Appledore Island on May 10-11, 2003. It is not clear that it was migrating, however, because it appeared to be flying west from the Isles of Shoals to the mainland.

Other reporters saw birds they believed were definitely migrating. Mark Lynch, at Westport MA on 5/2, saw " 7 Ruby-throats migrating along the coast, including a tight group of 3" (massbird, 5/02) There were many other coastal reports of hummers which were probably migrating, especially from Cape Ann, Plum Island,Truro, and Marblehead Neck, MA.

Several observers reported great consistency over several years in the arrival dates for their hummingbirds. This is not direct evidence that it is the same hummers returning to that site, but it does suggest it. For example, Steve Sauter of Ashfield, MA, reported to massbird on 5/03 that his past years’ arrival dates had been 2003- May 3; 2002-May 4; 2001-May 5; 2000-May 6; 1999- May 10. Very interesting!

Hummingbird behavior also suggests site fidelity. Nancy Dodge in Stewartstown NH puts her feeders in the same place every year. "One year I wasn't fast enough and a male hovered and yelled where the east feeder SHOULD have been and wasn't yet. He HAD to have been raised here." 5/16

On May 9, Julie Lisk-Gonzales, a landscape designer, wrote to massbird to ask "Does anyone know if the Ruby-throated Hummingbird will visit feeders in built-up areas such as town centers…? I am frequently asked this question."

The published literature on Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (e.g. Johnsgard, 1997, p. 184) suggests that they will breed in city parks if they are large enough and rich with food sources. Although the majority  of reports New England Hummers compiled…this year come from yards in "outer suburbs," with feeders and appropriate flowers and trees for nesting, or from wooded natural areas, there were several interesting reports from urban areas.

On May 15, Glen Tepke saw a male Ruby-throat in the Boston Public Garden, a large urban park. On May 14, Robert H. Stymeist reported three Ruby-throats at Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, MA, a similar, but larger "island of green" in a sea of buildings. On May 15, Fred Bouchard saw a female hummer at Hall’s Pond in Brookline, MA, and on May 18 in the "America's Birdiest City" contest, Bob Stymeist reported one hummingbird in his totals for Boston. Historically, hummers are also reported from Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, when the horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) trees are in bloom.

These sightings could have been either migrants or breeders. If anyone has documented or anecdotal nesting records for urban areas, New England Hummers would be glad to know about them.

In published reports from other areas of the country, even people in high-rise apartment buildings, with flowers and feeders on balconies, have seen hummers, though perhaps migrating rather than nesting nearby. I believe that people in urban areas should keep trying, because Hummingbirds can surely use some extra nourishment during their diurnal (daytime) migrations.

One hummer enthusiast asked "Could you tell us if we should put "protein powder" in with the hummingbird solution? The canister says there is only 0.01% of protein in the solution. We know they're nesting now and protein might be good for their babies, too. Maybe I overlooked this information on your website. Thanks"

New England Hummers replied "In answer to your protein powder question. Hummingbirds receive all of their protein needs from the bugs that they consume. There is no need to add anything to your sugar water solution. Protein powders have a tendency to spoil in a fairly short time period and that could be harmful to the birds or may keep them away from your feeder. The gnats and other small bugs that Hummers catch for themselves and their youngsters are readily available during nesting season."

Prepared by

Sharon Stichter

May 20, 2003