Hummingbird with Red Flower

by Judi Dressler

Title

Hummingbird with Red Flower

Artist

Judi Dressler

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

This Broad-tailed Hummingbird was photographed in my next-door neighbor's yard. Between my feeder and her flowers, the tiny birds seem happy, and then sure make us happy! I can't tell whether this is an immature male or a female, but judging by the sound, I think it is an immature male which has not yet developed a gorgette.

A jewel of high mountain meadows, male broad-tailed hummingbirds fill the summer air with a loud, metallic trills as they fly. The birds are seen easily at masses of flowers in the high meadows, where they hover and dart around the blossoms, often fighting and chasing each other away from choice patches. As they migrate during spring and fall, they access flowers and feeders at lower altitudes. Hummingbirds breed at elevations up to 10,500 feet where nighttime temperatures regularly plunge below freezing. To make it through a cold night, they slow their heart rate and drop their body temperature, entering a state of torpor. As soon as the sun comes up, displaying males show off their rose-magenta throats while performing spectacular dives. After attracting a mate, females raise the young on their own.

Photo taken on August 16, 2020, in Louisville, CO

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Descriptive keywords and tags for this image include hummingbird, hummingbirds, broad-tailed hummingbirds, broad tailed, bird, birds flying, in flight, hummer, red, yellow, flower, flowers, immature male, female, nectar, small, tiny, trochilidae, selasphorus platycercus, selasphorus, colorful, art, birds, fauna, nature, wildlife, humming bird, humming birds, colorado, judi dressler and dressler.

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August 17th, 2020

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