Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Three Amigos Drinking Party

Had I not seen it with my own two eyes, and ZOOMED in at 75X to capture this image, I would NOT have believed it was true:

What appear to be 3 adolescent Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna), likely all young males, Most Likely all nest-mates (brothers), drinking together, from the exact same nectar feeder at sunset in my back yard.  Fueled by Tullamore Dew and a beautiful sunset, I took out my screen in the Master bed room, enabling a panoramic view of the back yard, and low & behold...   3 males...  none with even a goatee of chin color yet.  I saw two..   then three..  and could not believe my eyes.

Hummingbird males, who instinctively try and drive off - even kill - competitor males from feeders had reached a silent detente, drinking at sunset, quaffing down the last carbs of the night to fuel their 200 bpm heart rhythms while they waited for the giant orbiting sphere to appear in the East tomorrow morning.

It's either three adolescent males sharing a keg, or three sisters sharing a double magnum bottle of sweet sweet nectar before putting the kids to bed.  Either way, I am delighted to see that one of the 7 feeders in my yard have attracted communal, cooperative hummingbirds.

[not to be sexist, but they have the "starting indications of goatees", with little speckles.  Female Anna's have nearly white / gray throats with no color...  so I think this is a keg party.]

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