Archilochus colubris

Ruby-throated hummingbirds Most people think of migration as an autumn phenomenon, but it begins in mid-July for ruby-throated hummingbirds, when most birds have finished nesting and some begin to head south. By August the masses are moving, so get your feeders ready and replenished. While it may look like the same bird continually visits your feeder, studies of marked birds show that most individuals linger only a day or two and then move on, replaced by newly arriving migrants.

Get out those birdfeeders--ruby-throated hummingbirds return to North Carolina in late March and April. Males return first, arriving just before the flowers (coral honeysuckle, buckeyes, and columbine) they feed on bloom. The birds also visit holes made in trees by yellow-bellied sapsuckers, feeding on sap and the insects attracted to it. The migration continues for weeks, since hummingbirds that breed in Canada don’t arrive there until mid to late May.

Cool Links:

North American Ruby-throat Migration Map - Track this spring’s hummingbird migration and report your first sighting.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Part of the Museum's own NC Hummers Web site, this page includes identification tips with accompanying photos.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - this page from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has a good recording of the song and wing beats.

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small photo: the Sargents; large photo: Mike Dunn