This post has some pictures from the past that I’m finally getting around to processing. Dave and I went on a hike in the Sonoran Desert last month, and there are some flowers and butterflies from that trip. I also included some photos of the Anna’s Hummingbird from our yard.
In the spring during mating season, the male in most hummingbird species exhibits a behavior called the ‘courtship dive’. They hover high in the air, then make a fast dive. At the bottom of their dive, when their speed is high, they use their feathers to produce a sound. Anna’s Hummingbirds use their tail feathers to make a high pitched short duration squeak-like sound that is quite loud.
We have four hummingbird feeders in our yard. They attract Anna’s all year long, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds in the summer. I was in the backyard doing yard work when I heard the characteristic squeak sound, and then saw the Anna’s doing the dive. I got my camera thinking I might get lucky and capture it at the bottom of the dive. I didn’t have any luck with that, but included two photos of the Anna’s facing into the sun at the right angle to ‘light up’ their gorget in bright red.
