Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Hummers

I always wondered why that name? Then a friend of my sister's showed me.

We have them in the yard year around here. Wife has one or two feeders out all the time.

Saw the last ones here about two weeks ago.

Surprise yesterday around sunset, six or seven of them dueling over the hummingbird bushes and feeder, more than I’ve seen here.

My particular dry urban location doesn’t draw big numbers like some spots along N -S watercourses around here do. Musta been many thousands crossing the city.

Females are difficult to tell from young of the year, said young constituting most southbound hummers, but there was an adult male in the mix, feeding unusually late into the dusk. Hungry.

Said male has already been to the tropics and back at least once. Dunno where it was coming back down from but we are towards the western edge of the ruby-throat flyway, so maybe Saskatchewan.

I still have a few hummers hanging around, although the nights are getting cooler. Usually see the last one the first couple of weeks of Oct. I did not have as many as usual this year. Still had several but down quite a bit. miles

Big numbers wearing out the flowers and the two feeders this week, cold front supposed to hit tomorrow and that will slow down lot.

We have a ton every summer, sitting in our open carport with feeders at both ends is a pleasure as they bomb and the males defend their spots. We tried to count two years ago, could not keep up with the little jets but am pretty sure there were over 20 at one time. Half that number this year.

Have not seen any Sandhills yet, but hawks are showing up and did see a couple of eagles yesterday. Season is changing.

We are down to 2 from 15-20 birds. Yet these 2 still fight over same feeder even though we have 8 feeders.

They’re contrary little buggers. Saw two feuding over every flower either would land on the other day. They’re not really afraid of humans, just cautious. Had one actually land on my finger when I was a kid. Had a couple come very close this year and give me the once-over before zipping off.

If they were as big as robins, it might not be safe to go outside…..

Yellow-billed cuckoos are gone. Haven’t seen or heard an Oriole in a couple of years. Neither is ever common here.

Looks like the last ones left our yard this weekend. Saw last one Saturday morning and nothing since. We had a bunch this summer.

One or two still here...most left a few weeks ago...wife pulled her feeders when they left.....last ones still hitting hanging baskets couple times a day.

Had a couple hitting my hanging baskets Sat.

I saw two female or juveniles here this morning. Very late as most left at least a week ago, maybe two. I suspect that this one might be a casualty and never got the message to go south. The birders say that leaving the feeder up has no influence on when they leave. I never understood why they need to go all the way to Central America when the southern states have lots of flowering plants. I've only seen one in FL. For a hummer flying over the Gulf, it seems like a suicidal shortcut.