Ruby Throated Hummingbird Fledgling

A flash of green and red the ruby throated hummingbird is eastern north america s sole breeding hummingbird.

Ruby throated hummingbird fledgling.

The ruby throated hummingbird archilochus colubris is a species of hummingbird that generally spends the winter in central america mexico and florida and migrates to canada and other parts of eastern north america for the summer to breed. Impressive migrants despite their small size some ruby throats may. Hummingbird fledgling this is a baby ruby throated hummingbird says linda schoenherr. Feeders and flower gardens are great ways to attract these birds and some people turn their yards into buzzing clouds of hummingbirds each summer.

When perched a ruby throated hummingbird measures about 3 7 5cm from tip of beak to tip of tail. My dog and i were in the front yard when she pointed it out to me. Hovering in front of a flower to sip nectar it beats its wings more than 50 times per second. An adult ruby throated hummingbird may eat twice its body weight in food each day which it burns up with the high metabolism necessary to sustain its rapid wing beat and energetic movements.

It is by far the most common hummingbird seen east of the mississippi river in north america. These brilliant tiny precision flying creatures glitter like jewels in the full sun then vanish with a zip toward the next nectar source. Unlike most animal species in rthus adult females are typically about 15 25 larger than adult males there are still big males and small females however so ruby throats should not be. There it is fairly common in summer in open woods and gardens.

Hundreds of kinds of hummingbirds nest in the american tropics and more than a dozen in the western u s but east of the great plains there is only the ruby throat.