First hummer of the summer

The hummingbirds have been slow to visit my matching front-porch and back-deck feeders this year.

I watched and waited. Finally, at least two weeks since I'd first filled the feeders, a tiny baby hummer appeared in the kitchen window and sipped at the nectar.

He was small even for the smallest of bird breeds. I'd be surprised if he weighed half an ounce.

After him, there was what seemed to me a long dry spell.

Yesterday, I sat for hours on the front porch. I hadn't meant to stay so long -- it was an uncomfortably muggy day -- but when I'd been there reading for a while, I heard the familiar buzz-whirr of tiny wings.

It was the fellow you see above -- if a hummingbird could ever be called ordinary, this one would be, because it has fewer of the jewel-colored feathers than one normally likes to see.

I believe the bird to be a female ruby-throat because the females of that species have next to no color. Certainly as you can see, no ruby-colored throat.

But she is no less precious for not being a flying gem in the strictest sense.

At any rate I went and fetched my camera, brought it outside, and waited.

I had no choice but to wait, not just for the hummingbird, but for my camera's lens to adjust from being in a cool house to coming out into the hot, humid afternoon.

You have to be patient until condensation stops forming on the lens, then wipe it with a soft cloth.

She didn't come back. I put the camera down and picked up my book. Enough time elapsed for me to read Joan Didion's short essay 7000 Romaine, Los Angeles 38.

Thus my nose was in the book when I next heard the whir of wings. I looked up slowly and soundlessly, since any quick movement or sound will startle the hummers.

I expected to see the female ruby throat again and was mad at myself for having put the camera down.

But it wasn't the lady. This time, it was the gentleman. Glossy black, with a throat so red it took my breath away. I'd never before been so close to one so vivid.

He hovered, indulging in a sip or two, but mostly turning himself so that his blood-red neck feathers blazed and glowed.

Since I was sitting three feet from him, it was no use reaching for my camera. He would have been gone in less than a blink.

He was exquisite. I was spellbound and became obsessed with getting his picture.

All afternoon I waited, holding the heavy camera near my eye, through TG coming home from playing golf, through an hour-plus summer rain, through cicadas changing their tune from their croaky daytime song to the shriller one they sing in the early evening, until time to go inside and make supper.

He never came back. But she did -- again and again, to drink her fill -- and here she is for your amazement and enjoyment.

Now I'm on a mission to get her man. Fairly obsessed.

Just wait and see. That's what I'll be doing.

And that is all for the present.

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Happy Tuesday

Comments

[Mari]

Hummingbirds are so beautiful, and so amazing! It thrills me everytime I see one. Great shots!

[Judy]

Oh My! I guess you are obsessed! The Second Coming would happen quicker than that male Hummer coming back. Wonderful photos you got anyway. Hummers are so quick they are difficult to get in a photo. I have a few photos that show the end of a tail flitting away or only a feeder hanging there. HAH!

[Jennifer]

@Mari ... they thrill me too! Every single time. xoxo

@Judy ... I have a fast camera and once I decide I want pictures of them, it isn't difficult ... only frustrating! But worth the wait when they come. xoxo

[Cheryl]

I laughed all the way through the paragraph about you waiting with camera to your eye. All I could think about is that I bet you had one sore muscle in your arm the next day. I think you should hold that feeder in your hand and set the camera on a tri-pod. Oh, also, get a long straw to your iced tea to hydrate yourself. I think it would work. :)

[Jennifer]

@Cheryl ... I was too lazy to go and get the tripod and set it up! I'm such a goober! I have a remote shutter thingy too! Next time I'll be better prepared. Holding the feeder in my hand is something I had not thought of, though. If the male ruby-throat came to my hand to feed I would probably faint with delight. Stay tuned. Oh and I always have my cold soft drink handy, haaaahaha. xoxo

[Barb]

I could just picture you waiting and waiting, Jenny. I can't put feeders out because I'd have a bear to photograph as well as a hummer! However, I plant lots of red/pink flowers, and we enjoy watching the hummers hover when we're sitting on the deck. Soon ours will head for warmer climes. We've gone into the 30's a few times overnight.

[Jennifer]

@Barb ... In the 30s at night already! That's amazing. We've had beautiful weather this summer, although maybe the reason I think so is that mostly I stay home. The hummers have been thick around these feeders of late, chasing one another and making their little chirping noises as they try to keep each other away from the nectar. I got more good pictures today, from the kitchen window! My patience paid off. xoxo