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Calliope in GA



Noted the following on the Georgia birds mailing list.  While not in the
Carolinas per se, the bird is probably of interest to those in SC due to
the proximity of Augusta...

There is an adult male(second year)Calliope Hummingbird in Augusta at the
home of Betsy Ristroph.  I was able to confirm this morning that this
Calliope is the same bird that was banded in her yard last winter as an
immature male.  This is the first time we have been able to document a
Calliope returning to GA!  He is in excellent shape and is very fat.  He
actually weighed more than one of the male Rufous banded earlier this year!
Although he appears to be in complete adult plumage, he is still retaining
some features of his youth.  His primaries and tail are quite worn and his
outer retrices still show white tips.  Other than that he is gorgeous.  I
have posted a couple pictures on the Georgia Hummer website homepage if you
are interested at www.gahummer.org.

This bird exhibited some behavior that changed my opinion of Calliopes.  I
have always believed that Calliopes were meek and timid and gave way to
other hummingbirds.  While Betsy and I was watching him looking at the trap
a young Ruby-throat came up to our left and started feeding on her Pineapple
Sage.  Out of nowhere the Ruby-throat got buzzed and chased over the house.
A few minutes later the Calliope came back and went straight into the trap.
Betsy stated that she saw this behavior earlier once.

If you would like to see this bird, call Betsy Ristroph at 706-738-4684 to
find out when would be a good time to come out.  She has graciously welcomed
visitors to her yard to see this bird.  Keep those feeders out and let me
know if you see any hummingbird after November 1st!

Take Care,

Rusty Trump
Suwanee, GA


Best,
Steve Shultz
Cary, NC
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