foggy hum

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Young male pausing long enough to be photographed.

Hummingbirds in the fog. Could it be more fleeting?

And yes, in this case, the fog does hum.

Two cold fronts passed through in the past half week bringing rain, fog and lower temperatures. Still the fall migration of ruby-throated hummingbirds continues. 

Currently, I'm maintaining nine sugar-water feeders on my back second floor deck that is hardly big enough to park three cars: say a Toyota Prius and two Honda Civics, or the other way around. My Dad would bristle at the notion of such; we were a Ford family. So perhaps I should say, a Crown Vic and a Mustang. 

The hummingbirds come and go from the feeders, bluster and chase each other away, only to bluster again. Such speed and vigor, it's hard to count their numbers.

It is all so bittersweet knowing that in a few weeks, they will all be gone on their way to Mexico and Central America.

And my deck will be quiet again.


UPDATE: At Ijams this afternoon, we rescued a hummingbird that had flown into the Visitor Center. To hold one in your hand, is to hold one of the lightest miracles I can imagine. Only 3 grams, the same weight as two dimes. And in a month or so, it may be in Costa Rica. 

There are hummingbirds in these foggy photos but actually seeing them is another matter.

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