Where's the hummingbirds?

Today at work I had the nicest conversation with an elderly gentleman about hummingbirds. He told me he had about 25 feeders but so far not many birds. He was looking for some plants to help attract them to his garden. I highly recommended Black/Blue Salvia which he bought 4. He also bought some Gomphrena and butterfly bushes for the color.


I asked him if it wasn't still a little early for the hummers but he said he always has them at this time. He was concerned about the crazy weather we have had and wondered about the effect on them. As I listened to him, it was so obvious how much he cares about these little birds. I asked him if he had ever touched one to which he replied yes. He then told me the story of how one had gotten caught inside his garage(I think) and knocked itself unconscious by running into a wall. He said he picked it up, put it inside a shoebox, put a little sugar water in the box by the bird. He said it took 5 calls to different vets to see about taking it in and finally found one that would see him.

He said he waited patiently in the waiting room and then they called him in. When he went to open the shoebox out the bird went searching for a way out of the room. The vet assistant told him to just open the door and let it out. He wouldn't hear of it. He said he captured it, took it back home, placed the bird on a feeder. He said it fed for about 3 days and then disappeared. He said it never seemed quite right and figured it passed on.

I thought what a sweet story told by such a caring and compassionate individual. These are the kind of things that make my job and life so great!


A few tidbits about hummingbirds:

• They are territorial



• They are the only bird that can fly backwards



• They have to eat every 20 minutes



• The first hummers you see in your yard are scouts



• They prefer flower nectar over homemade sugar water