Hummingbirds
Migration Update: March 24, 2010
Please Report
Your Sightings!

Southerly winds pushed the rubythroat migration into 4 new states this week. Observers throughout the Pacific Northwest continued to report loads of rufous activity. This week it's all about food. It's early in the migration, and many flowers are yet to bloom. What fuels the hungry hummers this time of year? Build your own feeder with recycled materials to hang in your classroom window or school yard. It is simple will give you a chance to see a hummer close up.

Today's Report Includes:
Image of the Week



What Do You Notice about the Migration this past weekend?
Look again...
Highlights, Maps, and Questions

Highlights: "Hummer Sighted at the Feeder"
A flurry of hummingbird sightings came in over the weekend. Along the Gulf Coast and in the Pacific Northwest the maps are filling up. Southerly winds brought more birds over the border and helped move the ruby migration further north. And the little birds are hungry!

"After reading in Journey North that the hummingbirds are here, we hung out our feeder. Sure enough, we have been seeing a single Rufous feeding at our station," wrote an observer from Ferndale, Washington.

Last week southern winds helped rubythroats flap north across new borders and into 4 more states! Can you name which ones? So far the little hummers have landed in 10 states! What's the next frontier they will cross? Pull out your Spring Prediction Chart and take a stab at where the hummers will be next week.

What is the Weather Forecast?
Look for mild weather mid-week across the continent. Then it looks like things will change. What is the wind forecast later in the week? Look to the NW — are the winds favorable to move the rufous further north or east? Study this week's precipitation forecast and think what it could mean for hummers.

Wind and Rain Arriving Later in the Week

Distribution Map

Rufous
Hummingbird

Ruby-throated
Hummingbird

This Week's Map
Week-by-Week Animation
Sightings

Handouts: Today's Hummingbird Map Questions
Rufous Questions               Rubythroat Questions 
Slideshow: How Hummers Keep Their Engines Going

It takes a lot of energy to be a busy, darting, migrating hummingbird! How do these tiny acrobats find food and conserve fuel on their long journeys north?

  • Slideshow: How Hummers Keep Their Engines Running

They're Coming! Build a Feeder for Your School Yard

Attract hummingbirds to your school yard. Your feeder can offer so much: the birds fuel up, you can observe them up close, and you can learn about hummingbird behavior.

  • Read what classes have reported about their school yard feeders

Make hummingbird feeders this spring out of recycled materials. Hang them around the school to attract hummingbirds all spring and summer. Try making one with a drink bottle, or create your own design.


Photo: Cat Traylor
Make your own feeders
Use these instructions, or your own creativity to design your own.
Ask the Hummingbird Expert: Open for Questions

Ask the Expert
Special thanks to Lanny Chambers for sharing his time and expertise again this year to answer your questions. This is the final week to prepare and submit your questions to Lanny.

Ask the Expert Will be Open
March 12 - March 26, 2010.

Meet Expert Lanny Chambers
Getting Started: This Week's Hummingbird Resources
More Hummingbird Lessons and Teaching Ideas!

The Next Hummingbird Migration Update Will Be Posted on March 31, 2010.

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