Hummingbirds never fail to fascinate
18.05.12
Of all the birds arriving in Texas backyards this spring, none is more alluring or amazing than the hummingbird.
Alluring because we are mesmerized by their tiny size, emerald green color and iridescent throats. Amazing because their flight pattern makes us wonder how a bird could have whirring wings that make it buzz around like a bumblebee while other birds normally flap or glide on wings.
Folks in the eastern half of Texas see ruby-throated hummingbirds in their yards in spring. Texans in the western half of the state host black-chinned hummingbirds. Large numbers of black-chinned hummers will stay to breed while others will continue migrating northwestward, some going as far as British Columbia.
Most ruby-throats will continue a migratory journey farther north, going all the way to Canada. Some, however, will breed in East Texas. They are the only hummingbird species that breeds in the eastern half of North America, and they have the widest breeding range of any North American hummer.
Source: Houston Chronicle