Late and Last Sightings Reported 2006

In the table below, last= the last date on which a Ruby-throated Hummingbird of that age/sex was seen at the site.  These are yard/feeder reports, unless otherwise indicated.  In VT, NH and ME,  most "last reports" of adult males came during the last week in August, whereas in MA the "last reports" came both in late August and during the first week in September.  Judging from the reports in the table, most of the female and hatch-year Ruby-throats seem to have left southern and coastal New England by the end of September, as usual.  But this has been an exceptionally warm fall, and there have been some stragglers and very late sighting dates.

The latest dates reported from the northern states were 10/3 in Biddeford, ME,  seen by John Briggs;  10/12 in Mill Pond, Durham, NH seen by Star Snyder; and 10/3 in Waitsfield, VT.  In southern states, the late dates were 10/10 in Coventry, CT seen by Don Morgan*; and a very late date set by an immature male Ruby-throated which lingered in a yard in Little Compton, RI, until November 15.  That bird departed on a mild day, with temperatures in the upper 60's -- just the kind of day you'd expect it might remain!   Also in November, in nearby NY, there was a late hatch-year female Ruby-throated banded on 11-17-06 in Cold Spring (Putnam County), NY,  by R. Yunick.

*[In addition, an unidentified hummer flew by Lighthouse Point CT on Nov. 10 ; reported in The Connecticut Warbler, 27:2, April, 2007, p. 66.]

For Massachusetts, November 20, 2006 is the latest confirmed RTHU record this year, set in Lanesborough, MA, at a house very close to the Pittsfield line. On November 19 Master Bander Anthony Hill banded a hatching-year male Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Anthony reported on "massbird" that  "This bird was carefully observed on Saturday morning by several observers, including Scott Surner who reported it to me. These folks' consensus was that the bird was a probable Ruby Throat. I was able to confirm that ID with the bird in the hand. Plumage characteristics and measurements all pointed unequivocally to this identification. The homeowner indicated that this bird first appeared on Monday 11/13. The mass of this bird was 4.7 grams and it had substantial fat deposits so it would seem that it is a healthy, albeit late, migrant and I'm hoping he's on his way soon. Temperatures are going to be very cold for the next few nights here 'out West'."  The bird was seen several times on the morning of Monday, November 20, and then was not seen again. 

For eastern Massachusetts, 10/29 in Arlington, MA seen by Oakes Plympton was quite a late date.  However, January 4, 2007, or later, in Plymouth, MA, may be the VERY LATEST regional Ruby-throated record this year, although there is a possibility the bird may have been a Black-chinned.  On December 16,  Donna Baptista first reported a hummingbird still coming to her feeder in Plymouth.  In late December several people (including New England Hummers) received a good photo of this hummer, taken by Donna. From this photo, Bob Sargent, national hummingbird expert par excellence, identified the bird as a Ruby-throated, rather than a Black-chinned,  on the basis of the shape of the outer primary, and other characteristics. Several observers were able to see and photograph this bird on January 4.  I have one report indicating the bird was still there as of January 9.

[Update: Bird Observer 35:2 April 2007 conservatively lists this bird as Archilochus spp., since some observers believe it could have been a Black-chinned. It is true that staying into January does not fit with our general picture of Ruby-throated behavior;  the latest RTHU dates in recent years have been in mid to late November, e.g. 11/20/06 in Lanesboro MA, and 11/15/06 in Little Compton RI, both noted above. A Ruby-throated in January is truly a statistical "outlier;" another reason to exercise caution in interpreting this bird. ]

[Another "hummingbird species" report came on 11/28 from A. Fischer in Chilmark, MA --B.O. 25:2, p.126]