Hummingbird hatchlings, day 22

And once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been and there you long to return.

Leonardo da Vinci

By all accounts, these hatchlings should be flying by now. But if this snapshot’s any indication, it seems our hummingbirds plan to hunker down until Mama Bird stops feeding them or they tumble out the sides of their overstretched nest. 

I’d love to have the hatchlings hang around forever, but I realize their survival depends on their abilty to take wing and fly. I suspect that’ll happen very soon; in the meantime, I hope my hummingbird entries haven’t overstayed their welcome.

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30 Comments

    • The orange blossoms have opened, filling the air with beautiful fragrance. Plus, their nest is made of such soft materials…I can’t imagine leaving either!

      Thank you for the welcome home. It was a very productive, very positive trip.

  2. Awww!! Look at those little honeys! All feathered out now. I wondered how long it would take.. I wonder what adolescent hummers look like, come to think of it. Adolescent turkeys look every bit as awkward as adolescent humans, but it’s hard to picture something this tiny as awkward, somehow.

  4. Wow! I’m in awe that you are able to get such close and wonderful pictures.

    I can’t wait to get plants in my yard again so I can have the sounds of nature in my backyard.

  5. These are the most incredible pictures! I’ve loved watching the babies develop. I hope you’re keeping some sort of picture journal (other than here, I mean,) because I could easily see this selling 🙂 I would pay for a little coffeetable book of these cuties.

    • Aw, thank you. I’m so happy that other people enjoy the hummingbirds as much as I do. They’re amazing creatures, and I’ve been so fortunate to see them grow from such a close vantage point. No doubt about it, I’ll miss them when they fly away!

    • I don’t know if I have the talent for picture book writing. (Although I’d be happy to partner with someone who does!) But a magazine article…hmm, that might be kind of fun!

  10. Awww.. they look so big! But they are only an inch? amazing!! My MIL has a ton of hummingbirds on her farm in the spring, so she and I are going to go nest hunting!

    • Here’s a photo from this afternoon, this one with a measuring tape. Yep, the pictures are big, but they really are that small.

      Happy nest hunting!!!

    • Oooh, pretty icon! You already knew I’d love it. 🙂

      I had a wonderful trip, thank you — lots of great research findings, plus I had a good time!

  16. Awwwww! Wonderful photos Melodye. I’ve enjoyed them all but this one is perfect… their shimmery green-blue plumage, wide open mouth crying, “Feed me! Feed me!” and the comfy, soft-looking nest.

    And with the smell of orange blossoms drifting in the air I wouldn’t want to leave either!

    • They keep getting more beautiful, don’t they? With subjects like this, the photos are bound to be good, even for an amateur photographer like me.

      They’re still cozied into the bottom of the nest today…from all appearances, they’re not ready to go anywhere yet.

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