40 Fascinating Facts About Hummingbirds

A hummer is not only a disconcertingly large personal vehicle seen on the road, but also a colloquial way birders use to refer to their hummingbird coteries. “I saw my hummers today” would be an appropriate way to describe your regular visitors, according to LeBaron.

LeBaron says hummingbirds choose their favorite locations based on geography, as well as a combination of natural nectar sources and well-placed feeders.

These smart birds can remember every flower and feeder they've visited, as well as how long it takes for a certain flower to refill.

In terms of migratory feats, hummers go the farthest of any bird in proportion to body length, according to LeBaron. For a 2.5-inch hummingbird, the few thousand miles traveled between breeding grounds and winter habitats is positively huge. The rufous hummingbird (pictured) has the longest migration of any hummingbird species. Their annual trek covers more than 3,000 miles from Alaska and Canada to southern Mexico.

LeBaron says some ruby-throated hummingbirds (pictured) fly 500 miles nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico during both spring and fall migrations. Others will stick to the coast and travel the longer route down the edge of Texas instead.

Meaning most are awake during the day and sleep at night. That being said, these special birds can migrate regardless of the time of day.

And they are all either in North or South America.

Hummingbirds go straight for the glucose, says LeBaron. They can eat more than twice their body weight daily, visiting a hundred or more flowers to do so. Because of their economical proportions and an incredibly high metabolism, these excellent pollinators can't store fat like warblers and other small birds.

Natural nectar is clear, so it's not a necessary ingredient and there's some debate over whether food coloring could harm birds. To refill you bird feeder, LeBaron says to make your own sugar water by boiling four parts water mixed with one part refined white sugar. DIYing instead of buying insures no added colors or chemicals. Other sweeteners like honey and brown sugar go rancid faster and can make hummingbirds sick.

However, it's a myth that hummingbirds will only feed on red flowers.

Yes, there is some upkeep involved. Bird feeders should be cleaned thoroughly every week with a vinegar-water solution, a task that can become quite time-consuming.

Because of their quickness and the shape of their beaks — which act like "spring-loaded sets of chopsticks" — hummingbirds can snatch insects right out of the air.

If you want to attract hummingbirds to your yard, plant different types of blooms that flower during the entire period when hummers may appear. Landscaping with native species serves both the birds and the ecosystem. You can find out about planting in your region here.

And they consume five to eight doses of nectar per hour!

Natural nectar is the key to a healthy diet for these birds — so they'll always prioritize a good flower over a feeder.

A hummingbird's brain makes up around 4.2% of its body weight. This is the most in the entire wild bird group.

Hummers don't produce musical sound. It's more of a chatter, experts say. Some species even make these sounds with their tail feathers.

Hummingbirds have an evolutionary adaptation that benefits them during cold nights, according to LeBaron. Torpor is a deep sleep similar to hibernation in which the metabolic rate drops as much as 95%. This lowers the body temperature so much that a torpid hummingbird maintains a hypothermic threshold that nears death. It takes them 20 minutes to an hour to wake up from this state.

People mistakenly worry about the cold when it comes to hummers, but it actually doesn't pose much of a risk. Some hummingbirds breed in the Andes, where temperatures drop well below freezing. Come fall or winter, the food supply is the limiting factor, not the temperature.

Averaging about 50 times per second, hummers redefine the laws of flight. They hover over their food instead of landing. In fact, 25 to 30% of a hummingbird’s weight is in its pectoral muscles. Their near-invisible wings can propel them forward, backward, and upside down, says LeBaron.