Hobbies And Interests
Identification
All ruby-throated hummingbirds have iridescent green feathers on their backs and long, slender bills that curve slightly downward. They also have white undersides. Males have red patches on their throats, but females do not. Males are also slightly smaller and have forked tails. Females have white throats and blunt tails with white tips. Juvenile male ruby-throated hummingbirds resemble females. Ruby-throated hummingbirds typically measure 3 1/2 inches long.
Habitat
Ruby-throated hummingbirds live in woodlands, parks and gardens from central Canada to the Gulf Coast. During the winter, they generally live in forests, citrus groves, and wild shrubs and trees. They are accustomed to humans and feed in gardens that have nectar feeders or their preferred plants, such as coral honeysuckle, trumpet creeper, buckeye and jewelweed.
Migration
These hummingbirds spend most of spring and summer in the eastern United States. Some are also found in western and southern Canada. During winter, they live in Central America and Mexico, but some are spotted in Florida and Louisiana. They typically migrate north at the end of February or early March and head south during August and September. Males usually migrate in both directions before females, and some start migrating as much as one to two months before females. Researchers believe that ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate across the Gulf of Mexico in a non-stop flight lasting 18 to 20 hours.
Nesting
The ruby-throated hummingbird's nest is 1 to 2 inches high and 1 1/2 inches wide. It is camouflaged with lichens and sits right on top of a branch, rather than in a fork. Nests are typically built 10 to 40 feet above the ground on downward sloping branches shaded by leaves, but nests have been found as low as 1 foot and as high as 60 feet above ground. Nests are sometimes built above or near water, or on loops of chain, extension cord or wire, but they are typically built on deciduous trees, such as poplar, birch, oak and hackberry.