It has been three months or so since the last of our Ruby-throated Hummingbirds flew south for the winter. A few do seem to stay with us along the northern Gulf Coast, but most of our winter hummers are western species. Ruby-throated hummers are intrepid birds that fly a long way each year between their breeding grounds across the eastern U.S. and Canada and their winter homes in Central America.
For any bird flying across the Gulf of Mexico, it is a tiring and dangerous trip, even in good weather. Ruby-throated hummers can fly as fast as 50 miles an hour. The 500-mile trip across the Gulf takes these small birds 10 hours. Imagine having to flap your arms for that long, nonstop. In the fall migration, weather can be fairly predictable. Not so in in early spring, when head winds from a late winter storm front can make this trip deadly. Under these conditions, vessels plying the Gulf and offshore drilling rigs commonly find hummers and many other migrating birds, exhausted and collapsed on decks, otherwise many would simply die at sea.
But many prevail and it is always interesting to guess when the first birds will arrive on our shores. For south Mississippi, it is typically around the Ids of March each year. This is usually when I hear their high pitch calls coming from the tops of my trees where they are slurping up much needed nectar from Cross Vines, that are the first to bloom. My nectar feeders also attract a few and it is important to keep feeders filled with fresh sugar water.
These are the first birds to make landfall, followed by countless others over weeks stretching into April and early May. Remember, the range of this species is large and covers thousands of miles, so it takes a while for all of them to pass through. It also means that aside from our nectar feeders, these birds need a variety of nectar producing plants to support them. And there is a sequence of native plants that bloom during this period that depend largely on hummers for pollination.
Red Buckeye is a favorite of hummers, blooming early. Coral Honeysuckle begins to bloom in late March, and one of my favorite plants, Coral Bean or Mamou, blooms in late April and early May during the later period of migration. As we deal with climate change, it will be interesting to see if these links between plant and pollinator survives, especially for plants that depends solely or largely on hummingbird pollination, like Mamou.
But hummers also feed on small insects, making up as much as half their diet. It is fun to watch resting hummers fly up to catch what to us is an invisible insect. But there are easy ways to help hummers throughout the year by planting native plants that provide nectar when they are here.
A few of my favorites include Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia), Cross-vine (Bignonia capreolata), Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), Trumpet Creeper (Campsis radicans), Turks-Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus), and Coral Bean (Erythrina herbacea).
Any of the native Salvias are also great to add to your garden, including the spring blooming Lyre-leaf Sage (Salvia lyrata) and Texas Sage (Salvia coccinea). And if you want a fall show, Blue Azure Sage (Salvia azurea) is a magnet for hummers. Enjoy the spring hummingbird migration, but remember, it starts in reverse come late summer and early fall. Enjoy!
Hope to see you in our great outdoors!
Photo courtesy of Doug Clarke