Wings~

On September 11, 2021September 11, 2021 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Tech Marvels, Wild Life144 Comments

Hummingbirds are the smallest birds in the world. Anna’s weigh about .14 ounce, but they can fly at speeds of up to 60 mph.

Unlike other birds they can fly backwards and upside down, and they are among the 1% of birds who can hover.

Hummers fly upright, not flat like other birds.

Their wings rotate 180 degrees, on their shoulder ball and socket joints,

and can beat up to 200 times per minute!

Despite their petite size, hummingbirds have mega-brains. Their brains constitute 4.2% of their body weight, greater than any other bird, and greater than human beings whose brains are about 2% of their body mass. Hummers remember how to fly thousands of miles, they know and remember which humans can be counted on to feed them, and they remember which flowers have the best nectar.

Cheers to you from the small but mighty hummer~

Seconds~

On September 5, 2021September 5, 2021 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, Wild Life196 Comments

The most,

hummers get,

to rest,

all day.

Their daylight hours are spent packing on calories,

to survive their torporous nights.

Cheers to you from the resting hummers~

(Click the photos to enlarge if you would like to see more detail.)

Final Flurry & Fotos~

On August 8, 2020August 9, 2020 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life282 Comments

Of flying fairies.

It’s a bit tricky to take a photo and feed a hummer at the same time!

Most of The Holler Hummers are packing on calories now to prepare for migration.

Black Chinned Hummingbirds, like the one pictured above, travel to western Mexico or the Gulf.

Rufous Hummingbirds (above) have one of the largest migratory bird journeys in the world, flying up to 3,900 miles each year. Rufous populations are in decline due to habitat destruction and they are now designated a threatened species.

Some Anna’s hummingbirds stay year round at The Holler.

Responsibly maintained backyard bird feeders have helped vulnerable hummingbird species thrive.

They have brought dwindling population numbers up and expanded the territory of many species.

During migration, hummingbird hearts can beat over 1200 times per minute, their wings can flap 80 times per second, and they often fly alone.

Cheers to you from The Holler’s magical flying fairies~

Holler Hummers Battle The Centurion~

On August 9, 2019August 9, 2019 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, Wild Life244 Comments

Each hummer wants this plant all to themself.

Between sips of nectar, they are constantly battling for dominion.

The plant is a blooming Century Plant or Agave Americana, that is the largest I have ever seen, big enough to feed hundreds of hummers. It is well over thirty feet tall and as wide as a telephone pole

Century Plants produce many offspring in their lives and we have lots of them at The Holler. You may notice the plant looks like a giant asparagus stalk. This is because it is related to the asparagus family. The Centurion stands guard by our front gate.

Other birdy pollinators, like orioles, love the nectar too, but they are far more civilized about sharing. The most they do is chatter endlessly at each other.

Bees are attracted en-mass to the centurion which blooms only once in a lifetime, and many 1000’s of bees are busily gathering pollen in the huge masses of flowers.

Century plants are not accurately named. They each live 10-30 years. Soon the entire plant will die, and the hummers will find something else to fight over.

Cheers to you from our giant pollen creator and the beautiful bickering pollinators~

Winged Lightning~

On July 21, 2018July 21, 2018 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life274 Comments

Of all The Holler’s,

flying folks,

Hummer’s are the fastest of the fast.

They pause, only seconds, to sip,

and then flash by,

like winged-lightning.

Cheers to you from the The Holler’s fastest flying folks~

Hummer’s Mean Home: Part I (Perching)~

On May 28, 2017May 28, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life295 Comments

Coming home means hanging out with the hummers.

I don’t worry about them when I’m gone.

I just miss them.

My husband, the actual-factual, logical-biostatistician, said incredulously, “They fly up to me like they missed me.”

He’s not used to thinking like this,

but he can’t help noticing such obvious birdy behavior.

Speaking of birdy behavior, we are having a problem this year.

The snoozing little capitalist you see above is dominating two quart-sized feeders and relentlessly attacking and driving all hummers off who try to feed. He spends more time hoarding nectar than feeding and snoozes all the time because he’s exhausted from all his effort. Of course he can’t even begin to drink this much nectar!

You can see him perched on the wire above the feeder, waiting to attack any bird that dares to drink! We have three feeders now spaced far apart to control him, one in a bush that is impossible for him to monitor, but when I shut one of “his” feeders down, he goes to dominate another. We have never had such a greedy little guy and he reigns unchallenged. I hope he’s not learning this behavior from watching humans! 😉

Cheers to you from the harmonious Holler Hummers….(and the one little greedy guy)~

Hummer’s Mean Home: Part II (Flying)~

On May 28, 2017May 28, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life141 Comments

If you read Part I, you know about the greedy little capitalist. Above is one of his victims with a feather askew from a direct hit!

Here is another escaping his wrath.

The good news is, moving one of the greedy guy’s feeders into the bushes worked, and he is now under control.

Birds are feeding and flying freely once again at The Holler.

We now have three feeders up and about twenty birds actively feeding. This is less than prior years, probably because the persistent drought has ended, and The Holler and all the surrounding orchards are abloom with flowers, giving the hummers lots of dining options.

The orioles and Grosbeaks are here at the feeders too, also in smaller numbers for the same reason.

So once again, peace and harmony reigns at The Holler!

Cheers to you from The Holler’s Harmonious Hummers~

Flown Away~

On March 23, 2017March 24, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, Flowers, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS224 Comments

Yep, we just did it again. It seems as as normal as staying home.There is so much to miss leaving The Holler.

The year round Holler hummers are brave in an non-conformist way, they choose not to migrate thousands of miles across the Gulf of Mexico, but to stay year round with us at The Holler, despite winter temps that frequently fall well below freezing and could easily kill them.

Other migrating travelers visit us seasonally.

There are four hummers that lived at The Holler year-round this year. These are two of them. They rely on our feeders and bugs to keep them alive year round.

Now we have flown off before the full complement of spring unfolds, missing all The Holler spring has to offer. Don’t worry, family remain at The Holler while we are away, to take care of all our critters including the birds.

I look forward to blogging as I travel and hope you will come along with me.

You make traveling a lot more fun and interesting!

3 Flights, 22 hours traveling time, and here we are,

ready to head further east.

Cheers to you from ancient Athens~
(Please do be patient iwth me if I am slower in responding, or unable to follow your blogs as closely as I would like, due to the realities of travel.)

The Holler Preens it’s Plumage~

On January 17, 2016January 18, 2016 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES266 Comments

I couldn’t do another post on Holler birds without including The Holler Hummers could I?

The year-round hummers are mellow and co-operative.

Right, and I am the Queen of Bavaria!

We have oak groves full of all sorts of birds including droves of Acorn Woodpeckers in their smart red pope caps.

There are Western Scrub Jays,

who don’t like being photographed,

and very shy Western Bluebirds,

who like it even less!

“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without words
And never stops at all.” (Emily Dickinson)
Cheers to you from your Holler feathered friends~

Holler Hummer Home~

On July 21, 2015July 21, 2015 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Uncategorized290 Comments

This hummingbird has quite a long tongue for a tiny little creature doesn’t he?

It’s good to be home, because the Holler Hummer’s live here, and I missed them!

I counted 35 today, at our three, 40 ounce feeders.

Anna’s, Black Chinned, Allen’s and Rufous hummingbirds live at The Holler.

I read in an online hummingbird forum that people don’t believe that feeders get more than one or two birds each.

They should stop by The Holler around 6pm when each feeder is mobbed by more than 10 hummers.

Hummers have the largest brain to body mass of any bird in the world i.e., they are clever little buzzers.

These tiny birds can migrate 1000’s of miles.

But many call the Holler home year round.

Which is why, there is no place like home!
Cheers to you from the astonishing, numerous, and quite clever, Holler Hummers~