BONJOUR MES AMIS: The Gorgeous Hummingbird In Facts and Photos

mercredi 10 septembre 2014

The Gorgeous Hummingbird In Facts and Photos

Although hummingbirds are a favored animal among most, many of us have never gotten the chance to see these tiny colorful birds up close. For that reason, we decided to provide you with a few great facts and photos of hummingbirds to fill you in on an entire enchanting world you may have been missing.

Jump to a video of hummingbirds in action!

Photo by: Matt Knoth/ photographyblogger.net

Hummingbirds are known for their unique flying patterns and can traverse right, left, up, down, backwards and even upside down! They hover over their food source by flapping their wings in a figure-8 pattern at amazing speeds and in fact got their name as a result because of the buzzing or humming sound their wings make as they move, moving at an unbelievable speed of 80 beats per second!

Photo by: kukkurovaca/ photographyblogger.net

There are more than 325 different species of hummingbirds. Each bird has between 1,000 to 1,500 feathers, the fewest number of feathers on any bird species. The hummingbird is usually most colorful in its feathers near its throat area due to iridescence in their arrangement, moisture and the light level.

Photo by: da100fotos/ photographyblogger.net

Photo by: Denube/ photographyblogger.net

On average, hummingbirds weight about 3 grams, when a nickel weighs about 4.5 grams! They have great metabolisms because they consume about half of their weight in sugar daily and feed about 5-8 times an hour.

Photo by: Mr.Clean1982/ photographyblogger.net

Photo by: Gonzak/ photographyblogger.net

Due to their light weight, the birds can fly at a speed of 30 miles per hour forward and 60 miles per hour on a dive. Also, despite their long beaks, hummingbirds have no sense of smell. Their eyesight, however, is particularly keen.

Photo by: Lori Greig/ photographyblogger.net

Finally, don't let their minute size fool you, hummingbirds are some of the most aggressive birds out there, regularly attacking other birds like crows, jays and even hawks that enter their territory.