Humming Bird Facts

Humming Bird Facts

1. The name hummingbird comes from the 35-100 Hz sound made by the rapid beating of their wings as they fly; a three gram hummingbird beats its wings an astonishing 50-70 times per second.

2. What is two inches tall, can hover in mid-air, and flies in every direction including backwards? It’s not an insect. The answer is the bee hummingbird.

3. Most hummingbirds are about three to five inches long. But the bee hummingbird is only five centimeters, or approximately two inches, making it the smallest species of bird alive today. Really it isn’t bigger than a large insect. But don’t let its tiny body fool you. This bird is a fierce flier. It can beat its wings up to 80 times per second. If you ever see one in flight, you’ll notice its wings are just a blur to the human eye. Hummingbirds are also the only vertebrates that can hover in one place. Add to that being able to fly backwards and upside down, and these creatures are amazing flying machines.

4. Hummingbirds (Family Trochilidae) are some of the most spectacular New World birds and are often referred to as jewels because of their bright, iridescent colouration and their small size. 

5. The Indians of Central and South America called them ourissa (rays of the sun) and their scientific names often reflect thoughts of the sun, stars and precious stones.

6. All hummingbird species are primarily nectar feeders, although they will also catch insects or lick sap. Consequently, like nectar-feeding insects, they are pollinators, and it is suggested that they engage in similarly specialised ‘lock-and-key’ relationships with the plants on which they feed.

7. During their daily activity, hummingbirds burn a tremendous amount of calories and usually feed about four times an hour. They have tubular tongues that they extend deep inside flowers to reach nectar. Insects also make up a small portion of their diet.

8. Since a hummingbird cannot feed all night, it has to slow its body functions during the night. This state of suspended animation is called torpor. The hummingbird’s body temperature and heart rate (normally about 200 beats per minute) drop and breathing slows to about 5 percent of what would be expected for a sleeping bird of hummingbird size. 
Hummingbirds can come out of torpor very quickly.

9. A resting hummingbird takes about 250 breaths per minute. Hummingbirds can fly forward, backward, and even upside down. 

10. The Rufous has the longest migration route of all humming-birds-up to 3,000 miles (4828 km)-traveling from summer in Alaska to winter in Mexico.

11. To avoid starvation, the average hummingbird eats half its weight in nectar and insects each day.

12. If the average man had the metabolism of a hummingbird, he would have to eat 285 pounds (129 kg) of meat every day to maintain his weight.

13. Hummingbirds can be aggressive and have been known to attack much larger birds including jays, crows, and even hawks.

14. Hummingbirds are unique small birds that can hover due to their figure 8 wing beats.

15. Hummingbirds feed on plant nectar and small flying insects.

16. Hummingbirds have long narrow bills, and even longer tongues, to reach the sweet nectar deep in a flower’s throat.

17. Hummingbird nests consist of pieces of plant, lichens, and moss all held together by spider webs collected by the mother.  This nest is designed to expand as the hummingbird chicks grow.

18. Hummingbirds eat every 15 to 20 minutes to maintain energy levels. When they are unable to feed due to weather or other reasons, they go into torpor.

19. Hummingbirds are the overachievers of the avian world.
To sustain their hyperactive lifestyle, they eat their own bodyweight in nectar and insects every day. Torpor is a mechanism used to preserve energy through a reduction in metabolic rate.

20. Studies show that a portion of the energy consumed during feeding is stored.  Hovering demands an extensive amount of energy.  While hovering, oxygen intake, fuel supply and waste removal in hummingbirds are all increased. This is the highest energy expenditure out of all vertebrates.

21. With its heart rate of about 1260 beats per minute, hummingbirds can pump enough oxygenated blood throughout the body within a very short period.

22. Hummingbirds have a higher wing pace compared to other birds which indicates a higher overall fitness of the heart and the muscle of the bird in general.

23. Hummingbirds, like helicopters, can hover.  They can also move ahead, sideways or backward at will.

24. A ruby-throated hummingbird, weighing about one tenth of an ounce, can travel 600 miles total during migration.

25. Hummingbirds not only sip nectar, but also eat tiny insects and spiders.  They may drink up to eight times their body weight daily in water.

26. There are 330 species of hummingbirds in the world; all found only in the western hemisphere.  Of these, only one, the ruby-throated hummingbird, is found regularly east of the Mississippi.

27. Flying consumes a great deal of a hummingbird’s energy.  Wingbeats have been measured at 20-200 beats per second.

28. The smallest bird in the world, the Cuban Bee hummingbird, is 2-inches long--about the size of a bumble bee.

29. Hummingbirds can come in larger sizes though: the giant of all hummingbirds is Patagona gigas, from Chile, which at 21–22 centimetres in length is the size of a starling.

30. A Ruby-throated hummingbird, weighing about one tenth of an ounce can travel 600 miles in migration.

31. Hummingbirds may drink up to eight times their body weight daily.

32. Although their normal body temperature is about 103 degrees F (40 degrees C), it may drop to 70 degrees F (21 degrees C) at night. They have the ability to endure temporary cool weather or cool nights by becoming dormant.

33. Pesticides, especially sprays, can be lethal to hummers. Even if they do not take in enough nectar dosed with malathion, Sevin or diazinon to kill them directly, the number of small insects available to them in your garden will drop dramatically. This may cause starvation and/or death of the young.