Can you imagine?

It is fairly cold here (for these parts anyway!) and out my 

window I see them daily.

The tiny hummingbirds.

No heavier than a nickel and no bigger than a mouse...

This is the male with his bright plumage.

This little guy is busy securing his homeland and making sure (I think)

that he has no invaders to capture his precious sugar water stash.

Did you know they use to be native to only parts of the Pacific southwest but have expanded

breeding/feeding territory as far north as Southern BC in the Pacific northwest because of the introduction of imported subtropical plants? 

Many people keep these guys alive all winter by providing them with the basic nectar recipe.

1 part white sugar to 4 parts boiling water, then cooled before feeding.

The white sugar is necessary because it is the closest thing to the real nectar of the

flowers. Substitutions can be dangerous, for example honey. This can cause

serious bacterial infection and death. Brown sugar contains molasses and is too

heavy for the wee things to digest. 

Both ferment much quicker (than white sugar )which again,

causes bacteria to grow in the feeders.

Now watch this...with the turn of his head in certain light...

 Bling with wings!!

This is called refraction of light on the feathers.

It's very scientific and I won't go into all the details but it's quite amazing that this 

is the same bird, only the sun is hitting those magic little feathers in just the right way.

Speaking of little feathers...

These will keep this fraction of a bird warm all winter.

Hummingbirds will go into a state of hibernation at night in order

to conserve their precious energy.

This is called torpor and basically is the method of lowering the body temperature

to match that of the environment.

I tell you...magic! 

Sometimes you get lucky...

It's that time of year around here when I go through white sugar 

like a candy crazed toddler.

No, not for me but for those tiny miracles of the bird world...

The hummingbirds.

I have 3 feeders right now as opposed to one during the winter.

The Anna's hummingbird sticks around all year and I keep them fed

through rain and snow and sleet and hail.

Then around the beginning of March, the Rufus hummers show up.

These guys are small but mighty and VERY territorial.

They chase the Anna's away constantly and chase each other and 

anything else that gets in their way.

Capturing their picture can be quite challenging.

Sometimes they play peek-a-boo...

Sometimes they just become a fiery, whirling blur...

Or you catch a bit of those magical light defracting grating feathers...

Maybe you'll get a glimpse of the power of those tiny wings that can beat up to 80 times a second!!

Think about that...can you count to 80 in a second?!

And then there's the moment you get lucky!

Just clicking the shutter button at the right time...

To catch a shot of these small wonders is such a treat...

They are so busy just trying to stay alive...sucking back all of that nectar to keep

up their strength to fly up to speeds of 55km /hr or 35km/hr backwards!

To keep that minuscule heart beating at rates of up to 1,260 beats per minute is a lot of work!

Their wee lungs can take up to 250 breaths a minute...

And then at night they sleep...deep sleep...torpor it's called.

 A type of hibernation that allows them to conserve massive amounts of energy

by lowering their body temperature and almost shutting down their kidneys.

They can lose 10% of their body weight at night.

Then at first light in the morning, you hear them...that delightful buzzing sound and they're at it again

So here's to these, the smallest of bird species, 

 for sure the busiest, 

certainly one of the most entertaining

and definitely one of the sweetest!

They're back!

Every winter now for about 4 years we've had a pair of

Anna's hummingbirds come to the feeder...

This is a labour of love keeping these little things going through

our harshest months. Last year during a cold snap in January, the

female disappeared and I think she froze to death.

I'm glad the male found a new mate...if it's indeed the same male...

When the Rufus hummingbirds come back in the spring, they chase these

guys away. I'm not sure where they go but they must find

an alternate food source because they always come back

after the Rufus' leave...

Another odd thing is that even within it's own kind, the male

Anna's is always chasing the female off. Maybe he wants to see how tough

she is. So today was something to see them BOTH feeding at the same time...

So stay warm little birds and I'll keep your sugar water full and thawed 

as long as you need it... 



Snow day!

Today we have been hit with an early winter cold snap, complete with snow.

I love the first snowfall of the year.

It brings the winter season into full view.

When I met Regina for a walk this morning, we had no idea how fast the weather would change.

As usual, many people in these parts of the banana belt of Canada, are fairly inept at driving in the snow.

Including me.

Luckily I can hide behind the disguise of a 4 wheel drive van.

This, the view from the studio this morning...

My big concern in this cold is my sweet little Anna's hummingbirds.

They winter here and I've had them here now for 2 winters.

I've learned a new word today...

tor·por  (tôrpr)

n.

1. A state of mental or physical inactivity or insensibility.

2. Lethargy; apathy. 

3. The dormant, inactive state of a hibernating or estivating animal.

The first 2 definitions I can relate to.

The third being what a bird, bear or other animal will do to survive the cold.

They will lower their body temperature slowly to match the outside temp and basically shut down their metabolism, sometimes by  95%.

Truly incredible.

In the meantime, I'm trying to alternate my two feeders to keep them going during the day while not in torpor.

I keep one bundled up outside until it freezes..

And have the other on standby when this one starts to freeze.

I'm also trying bubble wrap as an insulator.

The birds at the feeder and at the suet are busy as well...

There's one guy I know who is absolutely ga-ga about the snow...

So keep warm little hummers.

I love how the snow quiets everything out here...

The only sound now is the snow plow once in a while, and the soft sweep of the wind through the trees.

---

BBRRRRRR!!!

When I woke at 6 this morning the power was out...we were having a wicked wind storm all night and it was only a matter of time before this happened. We're used to this kind of thing but after the hurricane we had here 3 years ago, everyone is a bit nervous when wind warnings get posted on the weather channel...The wood stove is our best friend during these dark days and it is not only our heat source, but also a cookstove if we are without power...

This past October, I was lucky enough to have a pair of Anna's hummingbirds start coming to the feeder...

...the Rufus hummingbird stays from about April to August, then flys south but these little guys are here year round...I try to take pictures of them at the feeder like I do with the Rufus....

...but the Anna's are much more shy. The zoom lens is a great thing for birdwatching....

It has been -6 at night now and the winds today were fierce. I wonder where these tiny creatures go at night and how on earth do they stay warm?  I imagine the pair of them cuddled up inside the knothole of a big tree..shutting down for the night...side by side so they look like one fuzzy ball of feathers....I'll help them along through winter with the sweet sugar water they need to survive...

And me? I'm happy inside with the wood fire glow and candles burning...