Ruby-throated pic! (1 Viewer)

[jgheels2003]

Enjoy! Its the first week with my new camera so I thought I would share.

 

[Tz'unun]

Nice photo. Am I correct in assuming that you didn't take it in Greensboro, NC?

 

[jgheels2003]

Nice photo. Am I correct in assuming that you didn't take it in Greensboro, NC?

About 25 minutes away in Asheboro, NC.

 

[Tz'unun]

About 25 minutes away in Asheboro, NC.

That's very interesting, because it's not a Ruby-throated Hummingbird or any other species one might reasonably expect to see in North Carolina. The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences has a form for reporting unusual hummingbirds on this page:

http://www.naturalsciences.org/nchummers/reportform.html

The main North Carolina hummingbird information page is here:

http://www.naturalsciences.org/nchummers/

I hope you'll contribute to our understanding of hummingbird distribution by reporting this bird so that it can be properly documented.

 

[jgheels2003]

It doesn't need to be reported, I took the picture of this little guy in an aviary in the Asheboro zoo. I thought he was a Speckled Hummingbird which aren't native I assume until I saw the red reflection. In the second pic I took it resembles the ruby-throated hummingbirds I see in my backyard up until about September, but who knows what it really is. It is definately a hummingbird.

 

[Tz'unun]

In the second pic I took it resembles the ruby-throated hummingbirds I see in my backyard up until about September, but who knows what it really is.

It's an Anna's Hummingbird, a species native to western North America. Had it been a wild bird, it would have been a very exciting (but not unprecedented) find in North Carolina.

It doesn't need to be reported, I took the picture of this little guy in an aviary in the Asheboro zoo.

It would have been considerate of you to mention this extremely important fact in your reply to my question, if not in your original post. The BirdForum Guidelines state:

Please - no discussions relating to hunting, pigeon racing, the keeping of caged birds, captive birds or falconry. BirdForum is about the enjoyment and appreciation of WILD birds and other WILDLIFE. Please help us keep BirdForum wild.

Likewise, the gallery guidelines ask that posted photos be of wild, free-roaming animals, not pets or caged specimens. Cropping or reducing your photos to the recommended maximum width of 800 pixels will keep your images and the accompanying messages on the screen with no need for sideways scrolling. I hope you'll keep these guidelines in mind if you plan to post additional photos.

 

[stephennj]

I'll have to admit I did a double-take as well when I first saw the pic.Hello Sheri ,let us know if and when you ever come to New Jersey so you can sign my hummingbird book
-stephen

 

[Tz'unun]

I'll have to admit I did a double-take as well when I first saw the pic.Hello Sheri ,let us know if and when you ever come to New Jersey so you can sign my hummingbird book
-stephen

Hi, Stephen. It's been waaaay too long since I last visited NJ. I keep hoping for another invitation from CMBO - maybe I need to drop a few hints!
:h?:

 

[melaniecb]

I think that's perhaps the saddest thing I have ever seen...a hummer in an aviary. Poor little guy...

 

[Tz'unun]

I think that's perhaps the saddest thing I have ever seen...a hummer in an aviary. Poor little guy...

If it's any consolation, he was probably hatched in the hummingbird aviary at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and has never known any other life, and relatively sedentary Anna's are more psychologically suited to captivity than highly migratory species such as Rufous.

 

[melaniecb]

That makes me feel a TAD better. It just reminds me of seeing a hawk in a parrot-sized cage in a zoo. I know it was wounded/rehabbed but it was so sad to me for its soul...

 

[archilochus]

Then here's a real ruby-throated hummingbird in the wild. I was trying to get a picture of a butterfly that my wife liked and was focused on the flowers below the feeder. As I waited for the butterfly to settle I heard a hum. I looked up and there was this hummer about an arms length away, just looking at me. He decided that I wasn't a threat and landed on the feeder. All I had to do was to raise the camara and push the button.

 

[melaniecb]

Nice photo...when was it taken? I live very close to Houston and am still seeing the occassional ruby-throat passing through.

 

[keith richter]

cool! :eek!: