I noticed an increase in activity in the yard today and thought it odd that the Rufous appeared to have moved to the hibiscus hedge along the side of the yard. That is, until I saw the Rufous. She had very little gorget compared to the regular banded bird. Here's a picture of her:

Interestingly, the new bird looks very much like the one that showed up in mid-January two years ago, the afternoon of the day when Fred banded here in the morning. She waited for two hours to pass after the banding session before she showed and was then a regular until March. The following photo is one I posted after that one arrived to show the difference between the two:


This one showed up just in time as I received an e-mail last night informing me that Doreen Cubie will be stopping by this weekend to try to confirm the band number on the Rufous.

I was amazed late this afternoon as I stood 3 feet from a feeder with a trainer cage around it. Three hummers were fighting for it, including the new Selasphorus. A lot of activity was happening on the side of the house and in the front yard so I stood at the corner of the house where I could monitor both areas. This spot just happens to be next to this feeder. The Selasphorus zipped by within a foot of my head, and right into the cage. An adult male Ruby-throat entered the other side from below and perched to feed. Two hummers on one feeder is unheard of around here. The Ruby-throat has a damaged bill but seems to be quite healthy. He's made the rounds of the feeders in the yard but has been around for over a month. About the time I realized what was happening, a female Ruby-throat, who has been ruling the front yard, chased them both off. This went on for quite a while.

At one point, I was standing motionless, for what seemed to be hours, while the male Ruby-throat perched a foot below the feeder and the female Ruby-throat perched about ten feet away at eye level. I'm sure some of the neighbors wondered why I was playing statue for so long.

Steve Backes
Valrico, FL (east of Tampa)

It's hard to get anything done with that much action going on,I'm sure! Enjoy your birds!

Joan Garvey - Metairie, LA Zone 9

Doreen Cubie stopped by yesterday morning with the main goal of confirming the identity of my sixth year returning female Rufous originally banded in November of 2003. Unfortunately, she hovered all around the cage but refused to go in. She chased others from the cage, still refusing to go in herself. Finally, a Rufous entered the cage. Before I could close the door, a second one appeared at the door. The first instinct was to wait to see if she would enter as well but fear of both getting away won over and Selasphorus #2 is now wearing jewelry and can now be called Rufous #2.

Also banded was an adult male Ruby-throat with a badly injured bill. He's been around for a couple of months now, has been going through as molt, and was a very healthy weight.

The discussion of the pros and cons of banding probably should have been a thread of its own instead of being embedded the Arizona thread. That said, I just wanted to add that once the decision has been made to support it, it's very hard not to enjoy the opportunity to the fullest.

As a host, I haven't gone through a banding session where I wasn't a little concerned but I believe the potential for gain outweighs the little unsubstantiated concern. I've never had a hummer who's been banded not return, with one exception. That exception was a bird that had not been observed prior to the banding, at a time when my yard was over-saturated with birds. I had recorded 18 different birds in a two week period. My yard is only a third of an acre. Also, during that time, birds that hadn't been banded were observed that were not to be seen again indicating that sometimes they leave for reasons other than being handled, probably due to territorial disputes.

The potential for gain, as has been described by others, I see as a reason for taking part in the banding process (and, yes, it is an exciting opportunity to observe). We immunize children (and adults in some cases) against diseases they may not encounter. We pay for insurance that we hope we never need and we plan for the worst only so that we'll be prepared if it happens. My son appeared to suffer considerably more stress during immunizations and blood drawings than any hummingbird has during a banding session in my yard.

Research, including on hummingbirds, is needed to gain knowledge. You may not know when what you learn will be needed and/or how it will be applied but without it you can pretty much be sure that there will be plenty that you don't know.

Steve Backes
Valrico, FL (east of Tampa)

"The discussion of the pros and cons of banding probably should have been a thread of its own instead of being embedded the Arizona thread. That said, I just wanted to add that once the decision has been made to support it, it's very hard not to enjoy the opportunity to the fullest."

I can't seem to get the quote function to work, so I am quoting you this way, Steve. Until late yesterday, I was suffering major computer problems, but now that the son-in-law has installed a significantly larger hard drive, most things seem to be working just fine.

I agree that the subject needs more explanation and discussion. Since I am the most senior hummingbird bander on this list [and actively in the US and Canada], I will put a post together within the next couple of days and we can all participate in that discussion.

Congrats to you and Doreen on getting that second Rufous and the Ruby-throated banded. We never know which bird will give us the most exciting information. Which one will return for year after year? Which one will turn up in some out-of-the-way location? Which one will provide the answers to some of the questions we all ask? Currently, I am in the 30th year of a 5-year project and I am still finding out new information.

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Nancy L Newfield
Casa Colibrí
Metairie, Louisiana USA
USDA Zone 9