I hate to say goodbye. Especially when you know it’s coming.
The weather is getting cooler, and I know they can’t stay. But it almost seems they just arrived.
I enjoy hummingbirds. They seem so small and delicate, then they’ll slam into each other in ways that I honestly believe my body would not be able to handle. In spite of their size, they really are quite durable.
I also like the fact that the hummingbirds that hang around my place seem to have me figured out. When the feeder gets empty, they’ll come by and hover a few inches from my face, staring at me. Letting me know they are not happy.
So I feed them and they keep me entertained for a few months. It works. But I wish they could hang around longer.
Every year around this time, they pack up and head out. They travel light. Just a few feathers. But it really is an amazing journey when you think of it, travelling from here to maybe even Mexico where they spend the winter, then head back in the spring.
Yes, there is a migration map online. I follow them in the spring so I’m ready for them when they return. I like to have feeders ready when they return. I mean, these things come armed with a rather big spike on front of their face and I’m pretty sure that pound for pound, they could take me with one wing tied behind their back. So I try to keep track when they are headed this way.
When they leave. they just go. No “thanks for the syrup.” One day, they just aren’t there any more. There may be a couple stragglers, but they seem to pretty much all head out at once.
I saw a couple over the weekend. Not nearly as many buzzing around as I had seen over the past few weeks, but there were still a couple. I’ll leave the feeder out for another couple days. Then I guess it’s time to put it away for next year.
