Ruby Throated Hummingbird Food

These brilliant tiny precision flying creatures glitter like jewels in the full sun then vanish with a zip toward the next nectar source.

Ruby throated hummingbird food.

Take a moment to listen to the call of the ruby throated hummingbird. They are fascinating little creatures. Local environments of the ruby throated hummingbird. Ruby throated hummingbirds feed on the nectar of red or orange tubular flowers such as trumpet creeper cardinal flower honeysuckle jewelweed bee balm red buckeye and red morning glory as well as at hummingbird feeders and sometimes tree sap.

Ruby throated hummingbirds get all the water they need from the nectar they drink. In my neck of the woods new hampshire we have only one type of hummer the ruby throated hummingbird. It is by far the most common hummingbird seen east of the mississippi river in north america. Learn more about hummingbirds here.

These habitats provide them with the perfect mix of food water and nesting opportunities. An adult ruby throated hummingbird may eat twice its body weight in food each day which it burns up with the high metabolism necessary to sustain its rapid wing beat and energetic movements. Flying over water is shorter but they can t rest or refuel and may meet dangerous conditions in hurricane season. Following a land route lets them stop to rest and refuel but they can t count on easy food all along the way.

The ruby throated hummingbird weighs less than a nickel and like all hummingbird species including the calliope and rufous it is a master of flight beating its wings 60 to 80 times a second this tiny sprite creates a blur of motion and a whirring insect like sound. Ruby throated hummingbirds fly at night for most of their journey across the gulf of mexico. They do not need to drink water. The ruby throated hummingbird archilochus colubris is a species of hummingbird that generally spends the winter in central america mexico and florida and migrates to canada and other parts of eastern north america for the summer to breed.

The ruby throated hummingbird prefers to live in deciduous and pine forests farm orchards and flowering gardens. Feeders and flower gardens are great ways to attract these birds and some people turn their yards into buzzing clouds of hummingbirds each summer. Hummingbirds also catch insects in midair or pull them out of spider webs.