To learn more, see the original posts:

• 10 Animals Heart Facts for Valentine’s Day
• Valentine’s Day: Some Animals Really Have Heart

Update: The image above has been updated with the correct silhouettes for the blue whale and cheetah.

Ruby-throated hummingbird mother (with tongue sticking out) after feeding her chicks

 
Photo by Flickr member Moments in Nature by Joshua Clark
See more of Joshua Clark’s photos on Flickr >>

Your Photo Could Be Here

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Booted Racket-tail Hummingbird
Taken in Bolivar, Ecuador

Photo by Flickr member Bryan Hix | bdhixphotography.com

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Male ruby-throated hummingbird

Photo by Flickr member SX3shooter

See more of SX3shooter’s photos on Flickr >>

Your Photo Could Be Here

We want one of your nature photos to be the next Photo of the Day! Share your images with our Flickr group and tag them with PhotoOfTheDay-NWF12.

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Offer Up Some Nourishment

Bringing the hummingbirds to you will create plenty of photo opportunities. Attract them to your yard by setting up a feeder or putting in flowering plants. Red, pink, and orange blossoms with a tubular shape — like trumpet creeper and columbine — are especially appealing to hummingbirds.

Broad-tailed hummingbird feeding on zinnias. Photo by Bruce Gill.

Be Still. Be Patient.

Hummingbirds are skittish around motion. Try to minimize your movements and if you accidentally spook the hummingbird, just stay still and wait for a couple minutes. It will likely be tempted by the food and come zipping back for more.

Observe First

Watching hummingbirds’ behavior can help you better predict where to aim the camera and when to snap the picture. Typically, hummingbirds will alternate sipping and hovering next to the feeder or flower for a few cycles. So, if you want to get a photo of the hummingbird feeding, you can be prepared to snap a picture after it hovers by the food source for a couple seconds.

Check your background ahead of time

Go out and frame up a couple shots as if the hummingbird was there, making sure the flower, feeder, or perch is in focus. Now look at the background. Is there anything that could distract from your subject — such as bright spots or reflections in a window?

Try a variety of positions to see which gives the best background for your photos.

Male ruby-throated hummingbird. Photo by Harold Korn.

Use a Fast Shutter Speed

To capture a crisp hummingbird photo, you’ll need to use a shutter speed like 1/1000^th or 1/2000^th of a second. Experiment with different shutter speeds and look at the difference between the photos to determine what works best.

Keep in mind that fast shutter speeds mean less light will reach the sensor or film in your camera. Which brings us to our last tip…

Getting Enough Light

Avoid dark photos by putting your feeder, flowers, or perch in an area that gets a good amount of sunlight. Also, set a wide aperture (smaller f-stop value) to let in more light.

If your camera has the setting available, try shutter priority mode. This lets you choose the shutter speed and the camera will adjust the aperture accordingly.

Do you have any tips for photographing hummingbirds? Share with us by leaving a comment below!
 
 

Create a haven for hummingbirds and other critters
in your own backyard and have it designated as an official Certified Wildlife Habitat site.

If you certify by May 31st, we’ll plant a tree in your honor!

The photos in this blog were past entries in the annual National Wildlife Photo Contest and were generously donated to NWF. You can enter your own photos or vote for your favorites in this year’s contest by going to www.nwf.org/photocontest.

1. Lightweights–The average Ruby-Throated Hummingbird weighs about 3 grams which is roughly the same as a penny. The Bee Hummingbird of Cuba is the smallest bird in the world and only measures in at around 2 inches and 1.5 grams. Hard to believe they are in the same family as the huge African Ostrich!   My inner nerd calculated that it would take 30,000 Bee Hummingbirds to match a grown Ostrich’s weight.
2. Speedsters–Hummingbirds are small but they have blinding speed. Their wings flap 50 to 200 times per second. This is faster than any other bird species and, like most species, they speed up during times of courtship. Hummingbirds can fly 30 MPH in a straight line and dive bomb intruders at about 60 MPH.
3. World Travelers–The Rufous Hummingbird wins the distance competition with the longest migration of any hummingbird species at more than 3,000 miles from nesting grounds in Alaska and Canada to winter habitats in Mexico. Many Ruby-Throats make a 2,000 mile journey to Central America including, for some, an astounding 500 mile non-stop flight over the Gulf of Mexico
4. Aerial Acrobats–watching a hummingbird in flight is an incredible treat.  They are masters of amazingly quick starts and stops in any direction. Hummingbirds can even fly short distances upside down, a maneuver they often employ when being attacked by another bird.  Their wings sweep in a figure 8 motion (shown in slow motion) while flying.
5.  Tiny But Tough–These tiny little birds establish territories and will fight to keep others away. Hummingbirds will sometimes attack larger birds — even hawks or crows!  And they are oh so bossy. Hummingbirds and make deep-throated guttural sounds mixed in with mouse-like chirps, squeaks and twitters.
6. Micro Parents–As “micro” birds, they use micro fibers in nesting.  They make their nests from plant fibers, plant down, delicate mosses and even spider webs.  Hummingbirds also lay the smallest eggs of all birds. They measure less than 1/2 inch long.
7. Brainiacs–A hummingbird’s brain is 4 percent of its body weight, but is proportionately the largest in the bird kingdom.   Hummers have terrific memories and can remember where they found food from the previous year.
8. Fast Lane Livers–Hummingbirds are metabolic race cars. A hummingbird’s heart beats up to 1,260 times per minute and they take 250 breaths per minute.
9. Hungry, Oh So Hungry!– Hummingbirds eat every 10 minutes or so throughout the day.  They are such active eaters that one may visit as many as 1,000 flowers daily.  A hummingbird must consume approximately 1/2 of its weight in sugar daily.  In some circumstances, a “hummer” can starve to death in a couple of hours.   To make it through the night, they go into a suspended state called torpor – a state in which their metabolic rate is only one-fifteenth that of normal sleep.
10. Living Color–A hummingbird’s color does not really come from pigment.  Instead it comes from iridescent qualities in its feathers.  The light is reflected and a hummer’s bright colors wink on and off, depending on the light source and the angle of the observer.  This allows birds to flash colors when it wants to show off or hide them.

During Garden for Wildlife Month, you may want to attract hummers and have them scooting around the yard. Here is a fine guide on how to make your own nectar, and NWF has some hummingbird-friendly feeders and bird baths. And you can always consider certifying your yard as an NWF habitat online. 

A young male ruby-throated hummingbird sips nectar from bee balm in an Ohio backyard. Photo by Bud Hensley.

Indeed, in recent years, scientists and birders alike have noticed that several of the country’s 21 hummingbird species are showing up earlier, leaving later and ranging more widely than they once did. While the causes of such changes remain a topic of debate, experts agree that there’s never been a better time to entice hummingbirds to visit your garden.

It’s easy to attract hummingbirds to your yard. Here’s how:

1. Hang a feeder.

To prepare sugar water for the feeder, mix one part sugar to four parts boiling water. Never use honey or artificial sweetener. Both can cause a fungal infection in the birds. The addition of red dye is completely unnecessary and may even harm hummers. You can, however, make extra sugar water and store the excess in the refrigerator for as long as two weeks.

Change your feeders’ sugar water frequently, even if no birds seem to be visiting. The “nectar” can spoil quickly, sending a hummer away no matter how hungry it is. Replace the solution every five to seven days during the cooler months, and as often as every two days when summer temperatures remain above 90 degrees F. Rinse the feeder thoroughly—without soap—before refilling. Clean it once a month with a very mild, diluted bleach solution.

2. Fill your yard with flowering plants.

When you choose your plants, consider when they will bloom. One of the keys to luring hummers to your yard, and keeping them there, is to set out annuals and perennials with different blooming periods. By doing so, you’ll be certain there will be a steady supply of flowers in your yard from early spring until well into the fall. In warmer climates, some plants that bloom during the winter months will provide the birds with a year-round source of nectar.

Consider the color and shape of flowers. Almost anything red and tubular is a favorite. Pink and orange are also desirable, followed in descending order by purple, blue and yellow blossoms. As a rule, hummingbirds choose flowers that contain a lot of nectar and just a little fragrance.

Excellent hummingbird plants include native honeysuckles, most varieties of sages or salvia, many types of columbine and perennial penstemons. Other good bets are bee balm or wild bergamot, cardinal flower, trumpet creeper, ocotillo, lupines, scarlet monkey flower and fire pink. Check with a local native plant society or your local nursery to determine which of these native plants will grow best in your part of the country.

3. Avoid insecticides.

While most people think hummingbirds feed only on nectar, the birds feed their young a diet made up almost entirely of small insects. In addition, adult birds need regular doses of protein from mosquitoes, spiders, thrips, gnats and other arthropods. Some hummer lovers go so far as to hang an overripe melon or banana near one of their feeders to attract extra insects. Obviously, using a product that kills insects will also harm the birds.

4. Don’t forget water.

A constant source of water will complete any hummingbird haven. If you have a birdbath, place a couple of flat rocks in it to give the tiny birds a chance to bathe. Or add a drip fountain attachment, available at most garden centers. Running water seems to be a magnet to hummers—they will even fly through the spray of a sprinkler.

May is Garden for Wildlife Month—and the perfect time of year for making your yard more inviting to hummingbirds and other native wildlife!

The photo above of a ruby-throated hummingbird drinking nectar from bee balm was donated by photographer Bud Hensley and entered in the National Wildlife® Photo Contest. To enter your photos in this year’s contest, visit the official contest site.

Sources: “Creating a Haven for Hummingbirds” by Doreen Cubie, National Wildlife, October/November 2002 and “The Hummingbirds of Winter” by Doreen Cubie, National Wildlife, December/January 2011.

Create a haven for hummingbirds and other critters in your own backyard and have it designated as an official Certified Wildlife Habitat site. Certify in the month of May and we’ll plant a tree in your honor!

A male Rufous hummingbird pauses between sips. Photo: Les Welsh

For twenty-two years I have lived on a small island in the middle of Puget Sound and every year have put out at least one hummingbird feeder. As my fascination and interest grew about these tiny powerhouses, that number grew to nine. Yes, nine hummingbird feeders in one yard. Every year.

Now, I know that sounds a bit over the top but here’s the thing: Rufous hummingbirds are very, VERY territorial about their feeders and flower patches! Any time the males aren’t feeding or pursuing trysts with the females that arrive slightly after they do, they’re fighting to defend “their” flowers and feeders. So it became important to spread several feeders out around the yard and on opposite sides of the house. This allowed the battles to cease long enough for anyone to eat and to allow the females a chance at a feeder without getting chased off by the same guy who, just minutes ago, was courting and dancing for her like she was the most important thing in the universe.

Weighing in at barely 4 grams, adult Ruhu’s spread their winters in Mexico and migrate north with the advance of spring very often returning to the place of their birth, which can be anywhere from northern coastal California to Southestern Alaska. On my island, that timing falls remarkably in line with the Spring Equinox and, not coincidentally, right as the first salmonberry flowers open. By summer solstice, the males have left the island for flowers in higher elevations and points east and south. The females and young linger another few weeks before packing up and following dad out of town.

Catch, weigh, measure and release

A male rufous gets wieghed and measured and is not the least bit happy about it! Photo: Les Welsh

It seems the Ruhu’s, along with other hummingbirds, had seen their populations plummet as suitable breeding and feeding habitat has been displaced by clearcutting, urban sprawl and other development. Pesticides and other yard chemicals are suspect causes as well.

Turns out that Ruhu’s have incredible memory; they will often return to the same flower patch or feeder they were raised on, year after year. I had suspected this a year or two earlier when, on an early spring day a male showed up while I was gardening and began buzzing around one particular spot by my living room window. It took me a few moments to realize that he was looking for (more like demanding) the feeder that hangs there every year in the same place; the feeder I had not put out yet. I dropped everything and ran inside to clean, fill and place that and the other feeders as quickly as I could!

Attracting Ruhu’s to your backyard

Want to attract Ruhu’s to your own backyard? You have to make a small commitment to it, as feeders need to be kept clean and free of mold or bugs. As the weather warms, the feed can go bad quickly so you have to be prepared to change it as soon as it gets cloudy. And please, avoid the prepared “nectar” that you can buy in most home and garden stores; the intense red dye is really hard on the little guys’ livers! Just mix up some sugar water in a 4 to 1 ratio. Dissolve it well, fill your feeders and keep the extra in your refrigerator. Don’t worry; once the Ruhu’s find your feeders you’re sure to use it up quickly.

With the Ruhu’s arrival this year I realized it’s high time I looked up those ornithologists to see what data they may have collected about the little tribe that returns to my yard every year. I’ll let you know what I learn.

Want to keep in touch with us here in the Seattle NWF office? Connect with us on Facebook for more information on global warming and other issues facing the nation’s wildlife and wild areas! You can also follow us on and Twitter.

Thank goodness for YouTube! (Never thought I’d say that.) We’ve scoured the Internet and found these ten awesome slow-mo videos of wild animals.

1. Hungry Great White Shark

The movie Jaws gave this creature a bad reputation, but in reality Great White Sharks aren’t vicious man-eating beasts. The seal community may have a reason to complain, however. (Note: Definitely wait for the third clip of the shark breaching. It’s the best.)

Click here to view the embedded video.

2. Adorable Chipmunk

New discovery: Cuteness increases as speed decreases. A chipmunk washing his face in slow-motion proves to be utterly compelling video.

(Note: We don’t advocate trying to hold a chipmunk, but this little guy is being held very gently.)

Click here to view the embedded video.

3. Graceful Northern Goshawk

Watch this amazing bird fly through smaller and smaller holes in slow motion. This dexterity helps it dodge tree branches as it cruises through the forest.

Click here to view the embedded video.

4. Blood-Sucking Mosquito

Watch its underbelly swell up and turn red. All I have to say is …  AAAAAH!

Click here to view the embedded video.

5. Magestic Eagle Owl Coming Right At You

This is the video we saw first that inspired this blog post. Pure awesomeness.

Click here to view the embedded video.

6. Hopping Frog

The grainy, academic quality to this video makes it special in an old-school way. Also, don’t you wish you could jump like that?

Click here to view the embedded video.

7. Hunting Cheetah

This is cool, but if you have a weak stomach you might want to press stop before the 1 minute, 20 second mark. Just a warning.

Click here to view the embedded video.

8. Fly-Eating Damsel Fly

This guy accidentally filmed a big bug eating a little bug. I’m just amazed that he noticed!

Click here to view the embedded video.

9. Thirsty Hummingbird

If you watch this video too long, you will definitely fall into a hypnotic state.

Click here to view the embedded video.

10.  Fastest Man Alive

Hey — humans are animals, too! But watching Usain Bolt run this 100-meter dash makes me wonder if he is actually related to a cheetah.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Which one is your favorite? Tell us in the comments, or share videos we’ve missed!

Below is a quick guide to feeding birds year round. For more resources, check out National Wildlife Federation’s Bird Feeding 101 Tips Page.

When to Feed?

In the late spring and throughout the summer, birds have an easier time finding natural food from plants and insects. Still, they will make use of bird feeders year-round and especially benefit from them in the winter.

Types of Feeders

People who are new to backyard or balcony bird feeding sometimes wonder about what kind of bird feeder to get, where to put it and what seeds to provide. Most of them hold seeds, but others are designed to hold packets of suet or fat and still others provide sugar water or “nectar” — a favorite of hummingbirds.

• House or Hopper feeders are a common feeder type comprised of a platform in with walls and a small roof surrounding the seed.
• Tube feeders are another commonly used type of feeder.  They hold seeds in a central (refillable) tube and either have holes with perches along their length or deposit the seeds onto a lower tray.  Tube feeders are usually hung hanging to keep them (mostly) out of reach of squirrels. A smaller version of a tube feeder is a favorite of finches because it holds thistle or nyjer seed.
• Tray or platform feeders are flat feeders usually elevated on a pole that provide a platform on which the birds can gather and pick through the seed.  There are ground versions too.
• Window feeders are often smaller feeders that can be secured to the outside of a window by suction cups and provide a close-up look at the birds while they feed.
• Suet feeders are most often cage-like containers that hold suet “cakes” made up of fat.
• Hummingbird or nectar feeders hold sweet liquid for these tiny birds that mostly feed of the nectar of flowers.

Check out this great bird feeder guide from Cornell’s Project FeederWatch.

What size bird feeder?

It’s important to put out feeders with good size capacity and/or use multiple feeders to provide ample food, especially during snow and ice storms.  There are many stores in your area that sell excellent bird feeders including bird-specific stores and most lawn and garden centers. You can also visit the National Wildlife Federation’s online backyard store to purchase feeders while also supporting the Federation’s conservation work.

Squirrel-Proof Feeders

In some areas squirrels will make it their main goal to empty your feeder before the birds get a chance.  The good news is there are a number of very effective squirrel proof feeders including a tube feeder surrounded by a cage with spaces the birds can get through but the squirrels can’t. Check out these 10 Tips for Outwitting Squirrels.

Bird Food Basics

Different birds eat different things, so it helps to offer a variety of food types.  For starters:

• Black-Oil Sunflower is the most popular bird seed, and attracts a variety of birds to your feeder.  Blue jays, cardinals, chickadees, finches, nuthatches, and sparrows love it.  New to backyard birding?  Black-oil sunflower seeds are a great place to start!
• Thistle or Nyjer is a small, high quality, seed that goldfinches love. These birds have a beautiful gold color and they are a pleasure to watch along with their cousins, the red-hued house finches and bright-colored buntings. Thistle seed requires a special bird (finch) feeder with smaller holes,
• Seed mixes are popular for beginners because they attract many different types of birds.  They can be messy though because birds pick over unwanted seeds and toss them away.  “No-mess” seed mixes, that have been de-hulled, will cut down on the mess below your feeder.  They are more likely be picked up by ground feeding birds, such as doves, juncos, sparrows or even squirrels.
• Suet is basically a cake of animal fat and is a healthy source of protein for birds, especially in the winter months.  When food is scarce, suet may be a lifeline for many birds in your yard. Suet is often mixed with some seeds and served through suet cages.
• Nectar is colored sugar water and requires what is called a hummingbird feeder.  Hummingbirds are the most notable nectar-loving birds. They are a pleasure to watch in your backyard.  The increasingly rare oriole is a fruit-eating bird that also enjoys nectar.
• Smorgasbird: there are many other types of food that you can feed birds. Many birds enjoy peanuts, peanut butter, cracked corn, millet, apple pieces and oranges.  Even bread crumbs can be attractive.

For more, read Which Bird Seeds Are Best?

Cleaning Bird Feeders

Your feeders can get a little grimy. Because natural food sources are scarcer in the winter, more birds may be attracted to backyard feeders and those feeders will need to be cleaned with some hot water and dried a few times during the season.

A few other pointers…

• If you put out more than one feeder in different parts of the yard, more birds will come.  Some species are comfortable in crowds but others like their space.
• Also, try to position your feeder a few feet from a bush or tree.  This gives the birds a staging area from which they can wait and then swoop in, pick a few seeds and retreat to safety.  Hawks are very crafty in their ability to catch birds hanging around feeders too long.
• Once you start feeding birds in the winter, it is best to stick with it.  Birds need the most calories in colder months and they will come to depend on your kindness.
• Finally, it can save money to stock up on seed, but keep it in a cool dry place.

Certify!

Bird feeding can be a valuable addition to your wildlife gardening.  You are especially welcome to learn how, with your enthusiasm for backyard birds and wildlife, you can enroll your yard as a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat^® – right at home!

Learn more about attracting wildlife to your garden and how to create a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat^® >>