Hummingbirds Are Migrating, Bye Bye

Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Nasturtium flower

Hummingbirds are migrating and many Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have left New England and are on their way south and out of the U.S. Many western hummingbirds are also migrating and will leave the country for the winter. I took this photo of a Ruby-throated Hummingbird recently in my veggie garden, sipping a nasturtium. It was magic. The hummingbird was lit in the early morning sun. Not an easy shot to get, as it was flying freely, and only hovering for seconds at the flowers. What I like about this is that it captures a wild moment in natural light. Most hummingbirds have left NH, where we live, by now. We will miss them.

We will miss on of the favorite ways we get to be with hummingbirds, and that is watching them come to our hummingbird feeders which we place within 10 feet of our chairs on the deck. We can hear the buzz of the wings and see their throats move as they lick up the nectar at about 13 licks per second. For us, hummingbirds are one of the great joys of the summer. Plant late blooming flowers, such as nasturtiums and Salvia "Lady in Red" and keep up feeders until hard frost for migrating hummingbirds.