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| Print from Kunstformen der Nature -1899. |
Did you ever suck the nectar from the small ends of flowers, such as red clover blossoms? There are some birds which like the nectar in flowers, too. One of the flower-loving birds is the Hummingbird. Do you know how it gets that name? When it stops in front of a flower to get some food, instead of resting on a branch, the tiny bird keeps itself up in the air by moving its wings very, very rapidly. The rapid flapping makes a humming sound and that is why people say it is the Hummingbird.
Since Hummingbirds fly long distances during their migrations, some of them even crossing the Gulf of Mexico, they need to have very strong wing muscles. Their breast bones grow large in order to support those muscles. If we were to observe the skeleton of a Ruby-throated Hummingbird, it would show us how big the breast bone becomes. We would also see that it's feet and legs are very small in comparison to the rest of the skeleton. That is because Hummingbirds are almost always on the wing or perching on branches; and they never use their feet to run, or walk or hop. The bill is usually long and narrow so that it can be poked far into the flowers. Some Hummingbirds have curved bills, which are helpful also.
When Hummingbirds stick out their tongues you can see, if you look very closely, that the ends are forked and hairy. The birds use their tongues to suck up all the little insects they can find hidden in the centers of flowers; for most Hummingbirds really like insects much better than sweets. Often they hunt for insects in the bright orange flowers of the trumpet-vine.
The Ruby-throated Rufus is the primary Hummingbird species found in the Midwest but there are many other kinds of Hummingbirds living in Mexico, Central America and South America; and several of them have their homes in California and other western states. One brave little bird nests as far north as Alaska!
The very smallest in all the world is called the Fairy Hummingbird; and it lives in Cuba. It is never more than two and one-quarter inches long. There is also a Hummingbird from Colombia called the Cayenne Fairy, but it is much larger than the Cuban Fairy.
How large do you suppose a Hummingbird's egg is? The Fairy's egg is just a little bit over a quarter of an inch long. Think what a wee bird the baby must be! Hummingbirds' nests are lined carefully with plant-down and spiders' webs; and the outside is beautifully decorated with bright colored lichens and mosses. It would seem almost as if the parent birds took pride in making their homes as pretty as possible.
Most Hummingbirds are not much afraid of people. Some of them have been known to eat syrup out of a spoon! It would never do, however, to keep them in a cage; for they must fly, seeking insects in blossoms.
All the Hummingbirds in the world live on this side of the earth, most of them in South America. Away over on the other side of the world, in the big islands of Australia and New Zealand, there live a number of small birds which, like the Hummingbirds, are always seen flying around flowers, seeking insects and honey. They never hover before a flower as Hummingbirds do; but they act like tiny acrobats clinging to leaves, branches and flowers. Often they turn upside down in order to get all the nectar and all the insects out of the blossoms.
One family of these birds is called the Flower-peckers. If you lived in Australia, you would see spotted flower-peckers named Diamond-birds very often. Diamond-birds hide their babies under the ground, in round nests which are reached by means of long tunnels.
In Australia there are a great many larger birds which help the flowers to grow by taking the pollen from one flower to another. Most of these birds are known as Honeyeaters. Although they are much larger than Humming birds, they have the same kind of long, forked tongues.
Because the birds seek them, many flowers are given a long Greek name meaning "bird-loving." Hummingbirds, Flower-peckers and Honeyeaters may well be called flower lovers. Fisher
Since Hummingbirds fly long distances during their migrations, some of them even crossing the Gulf of Mexico, they need to have very strong wing muscles. Their breast bones grow large in order to support those muscles. If we were to observe the skeleton of a Ruby-throated Hummingbird, it would show us how big the breast bone becomes. We would also see that it's feet and legs are very small in comparison to the rest of the skeleton. That is because Hummingbirds are almost always on the wing or perching on branches; and they never use their feet to run, or walk or hop. The bill is usually long and narrow so that it can be poked far into the flowers. Some Hummingbirds have curved bills, which are helpful also.
When Hummingbirds stick out their tongues you can see, if you look very closely, that the ends are forked and hairy. The birds use their tongues to suck up all the little insects they can find hidden in the centers of flowers; for most Hummingbirds really like insects much better than sweets. Often they hunt for insects in the bright orange flowers of the trumpet-vine.
The Ruby-throated Rufus is the primary Hummingbird species found in the Midwest but there are many other kinds of Hummingbirds living in Mexico, Central America and South America; and several of them have their homes in California and other western states. One brave little bird nests as far north as Alaska!
The very smallest in all the world is called the Fairy Hummingbird; and it lives in Cuba. It is never more than two and one-quarter inches long. There is also a Hummingbird from Colombia called the Cayenne Fairy, but it is much larger than the Cuban Fairy.
How large do you suppose a Hummingbird's egg is? The Fairy's egg is just a little bit over a quarter of an inch long. Think what a wee bird the baby must be! Hummingbirds' nests are lined carefully with plant-down and spiders' webs; and the outside is beautifully decorated with bright colored lichens and mosses. It would seem almost as if the parent birds took pride in making their homes as pretty as possible.
Most Hummingbirds are not much afraid of people. Some of them have been known to eat syrup out of a spoon! It would never do, however, to keep them in a cage; for they must fly, seeking insects in blossoms.
All the Hummingbirds in the world live on this side of the earth, most of them in South America. Away over on the other side of the world, in the big islands of Australia and New Zealand, there live a number of small birds which, like the Hummingbirds, are always seen flying around flowers, seeking insects and honey. They never hover before a flower as Hummingbirds do; but they act like tiny acrobats clinging to leaves, branches and flowers. Often they turn upside down in order to get all the nectar and all the insects out of the blossoms.
One family of these birds is called the Flower-peckers. If you lived in Australia, you would see spotted flower-peckers named Diamond-birds very often. Diamond-birds hide their babies under the ground, in round nests which are reached by means of long tunnels.
In Australia there are a great many larger birds which help the flowers to grow by taking the pollen from one flower to another. Most of these birds are known as Honeyeaters. Although they are much larger than Humming birds, they have the same kind of long, forked tongues.
Because the birds seek them, many flowers are given a long Greek name meaning "bird-loving." Hummingbirds, Flower-peckers and Honeyeaters may well be called flower lovers. Fisher
Flowers that attract hummingbirds
by Marlene's How To's
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