A woman on a mission to photograph every species of hummingbird

A hummingbird builds a nest in my back trees just about every year and raises a couple hatchlings. They can be very territorial- buzzing my head as I walk by, constantly chirping at other birds. The nests are really impressive, made out of spider silk and other things the bird can collect nearby. They are very pliable and robust.

Here's a movie I captured of the nest (from a distance) https://youtu.be/Q49XETLwpxI and if you want to jump ahead to momma showing up to feed the hatchlings, https://youtu.be/Q49XETLwpxI?t=609

Wish I could find the video I made of their first flight.

I love hummingbirds! In undergrad I spent a summer working on a research project that was trying to determine if hummingbirds have persistent gut microflora. The bird's metabolism is so fast that it's unclear whether any microbes have enough time to colonize. Every weekend I'd tag along with a group of veterinary post docs who were doing their own hummingbird study. They caught and safely handled the birds and I waited patiently nearby to collect their droppings basically straight from the cloaca. Once, when the vets were done getting their measurements, they put a bird in my hand to release. My hand could barely register that I was holding anything it was so light.

While she is focusing just on humming birds, some are casting a wider net:

> The National Geographic Photo Ark uses the power of photography to inspire people to help protect at-risk species before it’s too late. Explorer, photographer, and founder of the Photo Ark Joel Sartore has taken portraits of 17,000 species — and counting — in his quest to document our world’s astonishing biodiversity! He’s over half way to his goal of documenting all of the approximately 20,000 species living in the world’s zoos, aquariums, and wildlife sanctuaries.

* https://www.nationalgeographic.org/society/our-programs/phot...

* https://abc7.com/post/endangered-species-day-photo-ark-joel-...

Also:

> In late 2023, 70-year-old birder Peter Kaestner was within striking distance of a goal that had never been accomplished: seeing more than 10,000 different species of birds in the wild.

[…]

> Just as Kaestner approached the finish line for his record 10,000 birds, though, a previously unknown competitor by the name Jason Mann flew in out of nowhere to snatch the record out from under him.

* https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/24/birding-...

I love hummingbirds. Before I got a hummingbird feeder they seemed like an ultra exotic sort of bird I could only see very rarely for a brief instant, but now with a feeder I can see them several times a day. Sometimes they even watch me back through the window. Remarkably aware for such tiny animals.

We get lots of hummers on Vancouver Island and, I swear, when their feeder is empty they send an emissary to find me, buzzing around my head, saying feed me! Feed me!

Beautiful photos and incredible work!

> I want to photograph all of them.

Birders are really a different kind.

Watching the documentaries and interviews, their motivation is always so simple and plainly stated; Then what would sound like a cute wish actually results in epics quests that span the globe, people going into completely remote areas, crazy hard to access deserts, even war zones, all to spot with their own eyes the birds they're after.

We live in Western WA. Mostly Rufous and Anas. Used to feed them, but had to stop as the battles over the feeder got very scary. Plus if the feeder was empty (it was located outside our kitchen window), they would hover outside the window staring at us. Lots of guilt when this happend. In the winter the Rufous somehow fly to Mexico. The Anas somehow make it thru the winter. Then the Rufous return, and the territorial battles start again. Here is a key for life, "Do not piss off a hummingbird."

Nice pictures! I'm just happy with a few :) https://www.instagram.com/p/DCk5w93pblZ This one was taken with a 100mm macro lens.

I once got a hummingbird feeder, and on the day 2, the raccoons in the neighborhood discovered it. Let's just say it was a big party with the feeder knocked down and emptied.

We don't get hummingbirds in the UK. But I saw some on holiday in Costa Rica and they are amazing.

I find it hard to understand how they can eat enough calories to sustain such an incredibly energetic lifestyle.

A few years ago I was lucky enough to visit Mindo in Ecuador, a small town famous for its local bird population. There on the edge of some forest is a hummingbird viewing area, a large open-frame wooden gallery with several feeders outside. I sat there for I don't know how long, utterly absorbed in these beautiful creatures - the day wasn't very bright, and with all the trees around it was almost gloomy inside the gallery, but the birds were glowing in the half light, flitting here and there like fairies, and sometimes momentarily flying into the gallery with us as they jostled with each other for feeding spots.

I remember one particularly enterprising bird had hit on the idea of claiming a whole feeder for itself, so while the others bickered and traded places, this one calmly perched on top of the feeder and chased away anyone else who got too close.

Absolutely magical.

The first time saw it in my home town with my little boy, I thought it was a bee. Only realize that after staring it for a minute.

It was very hard to take pictures of a hummingbird with my iphone and barely any photography knowledge.

250 species of hummingbird alone!

Amazing! hummingbirds are so cool.

People taking time to document birds are the best people on earth

fantastic! I love hummingbirds.

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PETS