Hummingbird Feeding Behaviors and Predators

[birdinthewoods]

I am wondering about the feeding behavior that we typically see at our feeder: sip, back off a few inches, hover, approach and sip again. This is repeated several times and only rarely do the birds sit on the perch. Why do the hummers do this? Are they looking for predators, guarding the feeder, or ??. What aminals (besides cats) regularly prey on hummingbirds, are they ever bothered by larger birds, such as jays or magpies?

[humminbird]

What aminals (besides cats) regularly prey on hummingbirds, are they ever bothered by larger birds, such as jays or magpies?

Almost anything larger than them and quite a few things smaller than them. It would probably be easier to point out what animals have NOT been reported killing hummingbirds. I have seen some reports (Cardinals, Wrens, etc.) that were quite surprising to say the least!

[Chris D]

because they can

[melaniecb]

I've even seen photos of a large praying mantis that caught and killed a hummer.

[tomjenner]

They are also looking out for other hummingbirds, which are very aggressive to each other. On several occasions, I have seen the hummingbirds at my feeder doing this action in a more exaggerated way, hovering back about 10cm and then dipping their beaks in quickly, before pulling away again. On closer inspection, there have been large ants feeding at the feeder, so they are presumably trying to feed without getting stung.

Tom

[Pantanal1]

I can comment on some of the species in Brazil.
The hummingbird in his feeding territory will spend quite a long time feeding at the flowers, especially the banana tree flower. It often perches for an extended period of time and feeds again. When the other hummingbird invades the territory, the owner expulses the intruder. The behaviour around the artificial feeders could be different.

Cheers, B (:
Wes

I am wondering about the feeding behavior that we typically see at our feeder: sip, back off a few inches, hover, approach and sip again. This is repeated several times and only rarely do the birds sit on the perch. Why do the hummers do this? Are they looking for predators, guarding the feeder, or ??. What aminals (besides cats) regularly prey on hummingbirds, are they ever bothered by larger birds, such as jays or magpies?