I didn't think Rufous was unusual in winter along the Gulf of Mexico?
It's not their regular winter-over territory but many do. Expanding their range..?? My understanding is; they're not in great numbers so you don't know where they'll turn up. If you have 'em one year you might not be lucky enough to have 'em the next.
For the Gulf Coast, I don't know how eBird designate this species; rare verses common. Here in Tom Green County this bird is common up thru November 30th. On 1 December it turns into a rare bird sighting.
As for their migration, they come thru Tom Green County on their way south via the Rocky Mountain region. In the spring their route north is up the Pacific Coast.
In April 2017 a wayward Rufous came thru Tom Green County on it's way north. Had it at my house for about a week. Got a lot joy from hosting that bird.
Stewardship is pleasant work in the spring but it can be a chore as fall turns to winter. TGC already had 5 or 6 days of freezing temperatures, I think we have 3 more due next week. More than once those temps snuck up on me, had to use a hair dryer to thaw out the feeders.
We normally don't have winter-over hummingbirds in TGC. Our locals. Black-chinned, know enough to get out of town by the end of October but these migrants get stuck here every now and then. The Rufous I have is the only one reported for TGC, I would think there would be more sightings if people kept their feeders out. There's a Rufous hanging on a feeder the next county over, about 60 miles from me.
