MOUNTAIN HUMMINGBIRDS

PHOTOS

Our local Anna's Humming birds arrive in late winter and early spring with their iridescent emerald feathers and pink throats that sparkle like gems in the sunlight and stay in the Pine Mountain Club area into the fall months depending on weather conditions and then head west toward the coast.

Anna's Hummingbirds love open wooded areas and mountain meadows for building nests using native plant fibers, downy feathers, and shed animal fur. Their nests are round and 1.5" to 2.0" in diameter and the exterior of the nest is camouflaged with plant debris to blend in with the environment. The nest materials are held together with spider silk and other fibers.

Anna's Hummingbirds consume nectar from native flowers, tree sap, small insects, and sugar-water 4 to 1 mix from local feeders. Anna's Hummingbirds capture flying insects and insects they find in spider webs, at times snatching the spiders themselves.

While foraging for food, Anna's Hummingbirds participate in pollinating plants. There is evidence that they generate an electrostatic charge while in flight that attracts pollen to their feathers and becks. They transfer the pollen grains to hundreds of flowers per day.

For more information on the Anna's Hummingbird, visit the following website:

Cornell Lab of Ornithology – Anna's Hummingbird
VISIT