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Re: Hummingbird near Columbia, SC
- To: Jerrold Griggs <griggs@math.sc.edu>
- Subject: Re: Hummingbird near Columbia, SC
- From: Nathan Dias <diasn@yahoo.com>
- Date: Tue, 28 Jan 2003 13:28:44 -0800 (PST)
- Cc: carolinabirds@duke.edu
- Delivered-to: pardo@metalab.unc.edu
- In-reply-to: <200301281645.LAA18348@milo.math.sc.edu>
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Very interesting. Most of what you mentioned points
towards Calliope or Broad-tailed. But the wings
extending slightly beyond tail tip screams Calliope!
Couple of questions:
Is the rufous near the tail very noticible or is it an
almost-invisible bit of rufous on the very side of the
folded tail?
Is there a gray smudge extending behind the white spot
behind the bird's eye? If so, how much gray and is it
wide or slim?
Is the bill of normal thickness for a hummingbird or
super duper needle-thin?
Is there a thin white line above and parallel to the
bill in front of the bird's eye?
Is the white throat spotted with noticible tiny dots
or a super fine mist of nearly indistinguishable
specks?
Finally: Is the bird in a birder-friendly/accessible
spot? :-)
Nathan Dias - Charleston, SC
--- Jerrold Griggs <griggs@math.sc.edu> wrote:
>
> Sorry to be posting yet again since rejoining the
> list!
> I spotted another bird this morning at the feeders
> in the Irmo, SC, area--
> a Hummingbird! I'm afraid that, growing up in L.A.,
> I'm used to looking for
> "interesting" birds and screening out Hummers, even
> in winter. But my brain
> was working today, if slowly, and it registered that
> there was a Hummer there
> near the Finches and Pine Warbler feeding nearby at
> the same pole.
>
> This bird appears to be quite small, with a green
> back, white throat,
> and pale buffy underneath. There is some rufous
> color down near the tail
> when it is perched. Most stricking is that the
> wings are so obvious
> compared to the tail. I would say the wingtips
> extend slightly beyond the
> tail. Underneath it has a little white fluff
> (feather?) that stands out.
>
> It perches in an azalea bush, out in the open in the
> sun, about 4'
> off the ground and just across from the feeder about
> 15' away. All
> indications suggest to me a female Calliope
> Hummingbird.
>
> I haven't had a good look at the legs and feet yet.
> Could it be banded?
> I know there was a Calliope in Lexington, SC (in the
> same county) earlier
> this winter, but I don't know any details about that
> bird.
>
> It may have been coming for days, since the fluid
> level has been dropping,
> but it certainly didn't show up during the snowstorm
> last week.
> Unfortunately, my photographic equipment is
> primitive, though I did try
> taking some photos through the scope. I will scan
> and post them if they
> come out well.
>
> Jerry Griggs j@sc.edu (803)407-2706
> Columbia, SC
>
>
>
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