Like many other Georgians, James and Jeane Pirkle decided to keep a nectar-filled hummingbird feeder up all winter in case one of the tiny birds paid a cold-weather visit to their yard.
To their delight, an adult female rufous hummingbird showed up in early December at their Lake Oconee home near Greensboro and has hung around ever since.
“We’ve gotten really attached to her and will certainly miss her when she leaves,” said Jeane.
That could be as late as April, when the bird likely will depart for its breeding grounds in the Pacific Northwest, said Karen Theodorou, a federally licensed hummingbird bander. Theodorou, owner of the Birdwatcher Supply Store in Buford, and fellow bander Julia Elliott placed a metal leg band on the Pirkles’ bird last weekend.
“We’ve been very busy this winter banding hummingbirds,” Theodorou said. Most of the 25 or so hummers she and Elliott banded in Georgia in recent weeks were rufous hummingbirds. A calliope hummingbird (a rare visitor) was banded near Braselton. A couple of ruby-throats also were banded.
The ruby-throated, of course, is Georgia’s only native summer-nesting hummingbird. It migrates to Mexico and Central America for the winter. But each winter, a few stragglers that didn’t head south show up at feeders in the state.
Theodorou said she fears the ruby-throats she recently banded did not survive this month’s severe cold spell. The rufous hummingbirds, though, apparently came through OK. “They’re hardy little creatures,“ she said.
They’re also feisty. Jeane said the banding procedure didn’t faze her rufous: “She was back at her feeder within 30 minutes.”
To band a hummingbird, it is lured into and then trapped in a specially designed cage. Using special pliers with great gentleness and dexterity, a bander clamps a tiny metal band — engraved with a unique identification number — onto one of the bird’s legs. Then, the bird’s sex, approximate age, wing span, weight and fat content are measured.
“Our bird weighed 3.88 grams,” Jeane said.
Banding helps wildlife managers track the birds and learn about their natural history — migration patterns, nesting behavior and other information that helps the managers keep hummingbird populations healthy.
If you have a winter hummingbird, report it at www.gahummer.org.
IN THE SKY: The moon will be new on Thursday (Jan. 30), said David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer. Venus is low in the east just before sunrise and will appear near the moon Wednesday morning (Jan. 29). Mars is in the east a few hours after dark. Jupiter rises out of the east just before dark and is visible all night. Saturn rises out of the east about three hours before sunrise.
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