Date: 11/05/2015

Number: 4

I've been observing these four hummingbirds all summer along with many more species. Two females and two youngsters are visiting the feeders many times during the day and appear to be the last to leave. I've read that there are two native species that hibernate up here in the mountains but I don't know if that is true. I'm not sure what species they are. The two older birds are emerald green with buff colored breasts. The two youngsters are green and blue and I've not been able to see their breast colors yet. I assume they are youngsters because they are really small compared with the females. I suppose it's possible that they are another species as we have five or more species that nest in the yard every year. I believe these females visit here every year for many years now. I suppose they teach their offspring of the nesting sites in our yard and neighborhood. These emerald green hummers are always the last to leave and the first to get here in April or May. Both parent and child seem to leave at the same time in late October. I always worry about them as the temps up here drop way below freezing at night. I guess they know what they are doing. As long as there are still insects and spiders with nectar in the feeders they will be ok. Seems they are late leaving this year by a week. I will keep the feeders out until they no longer show up in the morning or the feeders start to freeze solid over night. Thanks for the opportunity to participate.

Capitan, NM

Latitude: 33.7 Longitude: -105.2

Observed by: Donald
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