Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Meet the parents


Dinner is served at 6 -- and 6:10, 6:20, 6:30, 6:40 and so on, if you're one of the hummingbirds that dines at the porch feeder.
It hangs from the eaves, a cup of sweetened water, lovingly prepared, in its reservoir. A supplement to the bright, flowering plants below—trumpet creeper, columbine and lilies.

We sit, with our plates, watching from a few feet away, our conversation interrupted every few minutes by the loud buzz of her approach. From the very slender branch of a nearby tree, she zooms in, hovers and takes a few hurried sips. Just over a tenth of an ounce—an emerald jewel.



Then—off, as suddenly as she appeared.
Back to the nest to sit.


Her mate visits less often.
Perhaps he wanders farther within his territory or needs less nourishment now, than she.


Then, in a flash, he is there, even smaller than the female—tiny toes curled around the red perch while he drinks. His brilliant red gorget, black in the fading light of evening.

His role within this new family is finished. Nest-building and feeding responsibilities are hers now and hers alone.
The two bicker often. Their harsh chatter follows as they chase and dive—speeding past our heads within the porch.
Racing off into the blue until they are seen no more.



The nest I'm watching
6/25/08


Progress of this family will be regularly posted to
"A Bird's Life."


Thanks to Wigger's World for hosting Skywatch Friday each week at his site!

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59 comments:

Kerri Farley said...

WOW....a most excellent series!
Fabulous!!

Anonymous said...

I love visiting here. Thank you.

bobbie said...

Nina, these photographs are fabulous!

KGMom said...

Emerald jewels--most fitting.
Ooo--will you be able to keep watching that little nest? I am curious to know what BABY hummingbirds look like. The grown-ups are so tiny!

NCmountainwoman said...

I can't wait to see the little hummingbirds. Thank you for being our eyes. We look forward to the series.

nina at Nature Remains. said...

I'll stay close as long as is tolerated--until eggs hatch and babies tiny.
I may have to back off as they become aware of me. The last thing I want is to raise baby hummers!! (don't want to chance their jumping!)

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

Oh Nina, the photo peeking down into that beautiful little nest is perfect!

Anonymous said...

Very nice! I'm looking forward to seeing the babies hatch and grow.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Nina, it is such fun to watch hummers at such a close range. I can't wait to see the babies in this tiny nest.

It is odd that our male hummer seems to be gone. The female comes in regularly to the feeder. AS you say it is probably easy for her to get a good shot of sustanance.

Anonymous said...

I love hummingbirds!

Anonymous said...

I'm back ... oh no, cried blog world ... he's back!

But I'm glad I came back or else I would have missed these hummingbirds photos!

Pat - Arkansas said...

I love how you've captured the upsidedown sky in the hummingbird feeder. A perfect post for SWF, with the extra-added attraction of wonderful 'hummer' photos!

Anne said...

Oohhh.... I thing I have no words...

Just great!!
Lovely weekend to you.

Rose said...

I will be sure and follow your blog now, though I usually check it every day. Great post today.

Anonymous said...

You are so lucky. We had two pairs last summer and none this year. The food is out and is changed often but nobody is coming around looking hungry I guess.

I am now taking a diminishing dose of steroids for my Rheumatoid Arthritis pain and it works. I believe the chemotherapy drug is spelled "Methotrexate" that is used to treat a lot of things from cancer to arthritis will be used next. I just relish in being pain free.

So I am not participating in Sky Watch Friday just because I might not be able to make it around to all.


I enjoyed seeing your blog post for Sky Watch Friday and I thought your photography was excellent.

I don't know if you like to read or not but if you do this place is amazing.

I just got my first shipment of used books from Strand's bookstore in New York City, day before yesterday and they are in excellent condition.

They have 18 miles of used books. Think about that—18 miles. I had to start out by just choosing a category, like photography, and go from there.

I don't know how in the world they can keep track of so many books.

Look up Strand bookstore or copy and paste the URL here: http://www.strandbooks.com/app/www/p/home/

Anonymous said...

wow....perfect!

Please visit mine also in here Thanks

Juliana said...

omg....i love all ur shots

Mine in here. Thanks

SandyCarlson said...

Masterpieces, all!

Anonymous said...

Such a delicate small bird - and to have them on your very porch! You have captured the speed of the wings so wonderfully.

Good series ...

Tom said...

Beautiful Sky reflection... and a truely amazing post..

Thank you for helping to make Sky Watch so popular and special. I hope you enjoy your Sky Watch as much as I do.
Tom

Petunia said...

WOW! This is a fantastic post! Love these shots:)

Petunia's SWF

Unknown said...

Nice post Nina the photo of the nest is divine truly beautiful. Never seen a humming bird nest thanks. Kev

Pretty Life Online said...

Pretty one... Mine's up too hope you can drop by. Happy Weekend!

Aisha said...

Soooo beautiful and peaceful! i love how you took the shots! They're just amazing!

Sandpiper (Lin) said...

This is a beautiful post, Nina. I love the pictures! I wish hummingbirds would come to my house, but I just can't seem to draw them in here.

Louise said...

Beautiful and creatively shot!

Mary said...

What a beautiful little nest! Hope they hatch!

Kathie Brown said...

Nina, absolutely creative! Love the first shot of the world reflected in a blue glass globe! The whole series is wonderful and all the world is contained in those tiny eggs at the end. Well done, oh! Well done!

Anonymous said...

Hi Nina! Thank you for your comment on my blog. I actually had forgotten about that post and have since learned that it is not, indeed, a hummingbird's nest. I've updated that post now to reflect that mistake. Thank you! I love your blog. What kind of camera do you have? Those are some amazing photos of the hummingbirds in flight! I love birds!

Raven said...

What a wonderful post! So incredible to see the sky reflected in the feeder and the wonderful photos of the hummingbirds as well.

Gemma Wiseman said...

Allpics are so stunningly beautiful! But my favourite must be the reflected sky in the feed! That is magical!

Andrea said...

Interesting shots. Hummingbirds are interesting.

Texas Travelers said...

Excellent series of photos.
Nicely done.

Great story.
Also nicely done.

Wonderful choice for SWF.

Thanks for the visit,
Troy

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Nina: Very nicely done combining your two loves. Nice SWF.

Rune Eide said...

An amazing refraction in that water - a a bird we so sadly lacks.

Unknown said...

These are amazing shots. So beautiful.

Happy SWF.
Gary
Bodge's Bulletin

Lara said...

how nice! a great post!

bobbie said...

Every time I come back to this post, it takes my breath away.

Please go to my blog. There is something there for you.

Anonymous said...

Emerald jewels, indeed! Wonderful shots of these tiny treasures!

esnorway said...

werry good pics

Anonymous said...

great pictures. These are wonderful birds

Suzi-k said...

how absolutely delightful!!! Thanks for sharing your adorable little family with us!

Unknown said...

That is unbelievable! I have some Humming Bird shots on my page.

Carletta said...

Excellent photos! I love the reflection in the feeder.

AnneKa said...

Great sky watch pictures!!!!!!!!!!

Trish ~ ♥ ~ said...

Great shots, and you found the nest, how cool is that!

Unknown said...

Nina, these photos are lovely!
Have a nice weekend.

Q said...

Dear Nina,
You are so very creative! Great post for Sky Watch Friday!
The Hummingbirds do delight.
Sherry

Q said...

Dear Nina,
You are so very creative! Great post for Sky Watch Friday!
The Hummingbirds do delight.
Sherry

Jerez Sherry said...

cutie eggs!! I saw a nest once, amazingly tiny!

Shimmy Mom said...

Great shots. I love the reflection in the first one.

Naturegirl said...

Nina what an amazing find your wee hummingbird nest!!!
I love all your photos and how you presented this SWF series! Wonderful!

a woman who is said...

Those are stunning pictures. I feel way out of my league. You folks are real photographers. I just stumble upon things if I am lucky.

Re: the Oregon Coast. Not sure where you are heading exactly, but it is all a beautiful coastline. Peace and beauty will follow you there everywhere. The water is cold though, not like the east! Noticed you were from Ohio...

Wendy said...

Lucky you catching those hummers. They truly are jewels, aren't they?I love the pic of the nest. Can't wait to see the babies.

Flying Solo said...

Very clever and beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Original!

Max-e said...

Nina it must be so nice to be able to watch them like you do. We once had a pair of lesser striped swallows that nested under our eaves every year - they we an absolute delight to watch.

Anonymous said...

How much fun being able to watch these hummingbirds like this!

dguzman said...

OMG, Nina -- great! I can't wait to check out the progress!