Hummingbirds are Delightful and Brave

Hummingbirds are Delightful and Brave

Even though you are not a bird-lover, you cannot but adore these beautiful tiny humming birds that are a class apart from other birds. Humming birds that roam around wild jungles and forests have a lifespan of around three to five years.

But surprisingly, in a captive atmosphere, hummers may survive longer with a life of more than ten years. 

Hummers mainly feed on insects, eating hundreds of them in a single day. Their appetite increases during rainy spells and when they are about to leave for a long journey. They amazingly tend to become twice their normal weight during migratory periods.

These tiny creatures also love nectarine from flowers, thereby helping in pollination. The Portuguese people have named these little beauties as ‘flower kisser’.

Many plants in northern American regions are pollinated with the help of hummers. 

Hummingbirds hover over the flowers with the help of their wings, and then they make some forward and backward stroking actions, balancing their wing-action at shoulder level. Hummers can flap their wings up to 70 to 80 times in a second. Some of them are slow and flap only 18 to 20 times per second.

Their flight speed is over 45 mph, and as they have small bodies, it helps them to be quick and agile. There are around three hundred and forty types of species in hummingbirds. 

But in the US, only 16 to 20 species are commonly found. In the eastern region of Mississippi, the ruby-throated hummingbird is popularly found among the areas where they frequent.

The males have ruby colored red throat, and females have spotted throat. Most hummer males are very attractive with vibrant and flashy colors. 

For building nests, hummers arrive at their territory quite early and make necessary arrangements, just like human beings. Males are flirty in nature with more than one mate. Females usually cater to many nests at one time; a hummer mother may take care of newborn birds, while building another nest.

The most important duty of a female is to take care of the nest. A female bird lays two small eggs at one time, when they hatch- the young ones will remain in the nest for 20 to 21 days, before going out on their own. The nests are elastic in nature, and tend to stretch out with the growing hatchlings. The nests are mainly made of spider webs. 

Thus a hummingbird is full of activity and vigor. Humans can take many examples from their lifestyle, especially their hardworking spirit and boldness in the face of adversity.