Saved a humming bird

[Aoife]

This past Sunday I was awoken to a rapid buzzing and thwaping. I walked out of my room to investigate the sound and I saw a humming bird (believe the type is Anna's humming bird) throwing itself in vain against a tall window at the top of my stairs. It had some how gotten into the house and couldn't find its way out again.

From the ground floor to the ceiling it is maybe 16-18 feet and because of the stairs I was unsure of how I would reach the poor thing safely before it killed itself trying to get out. I could sense it's panic and frustration and it ended up getting it's wing caught in some wind chimes my mother had hanging in the window. It was absolutely still and hanging upside down. My heart sank. I thought that maybe its little heart burst or it had broken it's neck. The fact that it wasn't struggling at all really scared me. I thought it had died. I said a quick prayer to God, the spirits and the ancestors that it was alright. That it was only being careful.

My room mate got up upon hearing me banging around looking for something that I could fashion into a rod/hook so I could check on the humming bird. We ended up taking apart a dust mop and took the chimes off the hook. I slowly slid the chimes down as gently as I was able and the humming bird freed itself! My heart lept with joy when I saw that it was still alive and uninjured. However...it flew back to that same window and resumed slamming itself against it.

My room mate grabbed some cheese cloth and fashioned a net and attached it to the rod and held a step stool in place while I precariously leaned across the space to catch the humming bird. It was awkward, delicate work and had to be repeated several times but it finally worked when the poor girl tired herself out and couldn't fight me anymore. I scooped her out and took her outside to our lavender bush and expected her to take flight as soon as I released her. She didn't. She just sat there. Looking at me. Tilting her head back and forth as if she was studying me and utterly confused that I hadn't killed her. I bounced my hands gently to try and give her the impression that she should fly away. She didn't. She just cocked her head at me and then closed her eyes. I was afraid that she was dying.



Humming birds are very susceptible to dehydration and so we took down the humming bird feeder and I encouraged the girl to drink . It took a few tries and finally her little black tongue darted in and out drinking the sugary liquid. When she refused to drink anymore I sat down and settled in to wait. I wasn't sure if she was exhausted or just enjoying being safe or what but I decided that I would just sit there and protect her until she was ready.



After 20 minutes or so she flew off and I must say, that watching her make a rapid arc into the sky was one of the most beautiful things I had seen in a long time. It was the personification of freedom and beauty. I like to think she new I was trying to help her.

My room mate snapped constant pictures while she was sitting in my palm.
Here are a few. Enjoy





Over all it was a very spiritual experience and in those moments I truly felt like I was a part of nature. My body felt relaxed and warm-fuzzy-happy for the rest of the day.

[Selene]

Beautiful, Aoife. I love Anna's...they are very rare in our part of the country--just the sporadic winter visitor--but I've seen them in the west and they are really fancy little birds!

I had a similar hummingbird experience once when I was staying at a campground in the Chiricahuas of southeast Arizona--one of the big ones (Magnificent, probably) crashed into a window of our cabin and knocked itself silly. We picked it up and held it until it recovered, giving it a little sugar water from the feeder just like you did. They are such tiny things, but so resilient!

Trivia bonus: Did you know the Ruby-throated hummers, the common species in the eastern U.S., migrate from the Yucatan across the Gulf of Mexico to reach their nesting grounds in the U.S. and Canada? That's a 500-mile flight over open water that takes them 18-22 hours to complete! It's amazing that a bird about 3 inches long and weighing a tenth of an ounce can store enough energy for sustained exertion like that.

[Susanne]

Aoife
What a wonderful story & great pictures. We have just the Ruby Throated Hummers in our area but get quite a gang of them for the summer. I put out a few feeders & have had to rescue a some from inside the house as well. The craziest thing is when they impale their beak on the door screen. I've hung things up to deter them but every year one or two of them does it. I feel so bad but they take right off after we pluck them out

Trivia bonus: Did you know the Ruby-throated hummers, the common species in the eastern U.S., migrate from the Yucatan across the Gulf of Mexico to reach their nesting grounds in the U.S. and Canada? That's a 500-mile flight over open water that takes them 18-22 hours to complete! It's amazing that a bird about 3 inches long and weighing a tenth of an ounce can store enough energy for sustained exertion like that.

They are amazing! I always put out the feeders in the first week of May in anticipation of their arrival. They have taken such a long trip & the flowers are still sparse around here then so I like to have a snack waiting for them. I'd love to see other types in the flesh (or feathers!)
Here's a picture of one of our visitors.

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