Gorgeous Male Costas courtesy of - Marijke Janssen "Hummingbirds by Surprise"

The Marvelous Spatuletail Hummingbird - Photo Courtesy of Max Waugh

The International Hummingbird Society is pleased to announce that it is partnering with The American Bird Conservancy in an effort to conserve the dazzling Marvelous Spatuletail (pictured above).

According to Daniel Lebbin who is the Vice President of Threatened Species at the American Bird Conservancy, there is a new opportunity to protect this species. He states, “We are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities to protect species that are poorly represented in protected areas, and such an opportunity exists now in the Comunidad Campesina de Cuispes (northern Peru) where the community has expressed an interest in protecting 1,100 acres in the headwaters of the spectacular Yumbilla and Chinata waterfalls. This is an important tract of habitat for the Marvelous Spatuletail which is restricted to the eastern slopes of the Utcubamba River Valley and numbers fewer that 1,000 individuals. If protected, this would constitute the largest area of protected habitat for the species.”

You can read more about the project on our website www.hummingbirdsociety.org, under the conservation tab.

We would so appreciate your help in this profound project. This special hummingbird is worth protecting. We would love to help give this species another chance to flourish in the beautiful surroundings of northern Peru. Be sure to donate today and help the American Bird Conservancy and International Hummingbird Society in this mission.

Anna's hummingbird nest picture courtesy of - Hilary Joy Morejon

On January 10th all of us at the Hummingbird Society noticed what should be a female Anna's picking at nesting material just outside the Society. This is the earliest known nest we have had in Sedona as we are at 4,000 feet. We all scurried to the window to watch where she was going to place that freshly picked bundle. There are vines that have delicately grown over the years around the two story office building where our Society is located. As she glided away from the nesting material she landed just outside our front door, on the ceiling. Dangling there on a vine was a very small, but warm looking nest in the making. We are thrilled and love that she feels protected here, because that's what we are all about. One hasn't nested at the Society since before the pandemic. We were all so delighted! More updates to come on this amazing event. We will have a picture of her in the nest as soon as she is settled. Stay tuned!

We still have plenty of calendars to adorn your wall. Get yours ordered, today!

Hummingbirds are full of wonder in how they carry out their everyday life. Have you ever stopped to think about how they sleep at night when they constantly need to eat? When hummingbirds sleep, they go into a semi-hibernation state called torpor (TOR-per). This helps them to greatly conserve their energy so they can make it through the night. According to John Shewey, author of The Hummingbird Handbook, "They lower their metabolism by as much as 95 percent, slowing their heartbeat to around 50 beats per minute..." He goes on to say, " Their breathing slows, and they enter a state of hypothermia in which their body temperature drops to a set point, a temperature just barely adequate to sustain life." Hummingbirds usually need roughly 20 minutes (sometimes more) to fully recover from torpor and then they are ready to start their day and get to eating!

Check out the YouTube video above and see a hummingbird emerging out of torpor! It is quite amazing how these little miracles function day to day. Click the button below to check out our board member, Carole Turek's, Hummingbird Spot where she talks about torpor.

The Coquette hummingbirds are so incredibly unique! They definitely are the rockstars of the hummingbird bunch. Click on video above to Carole Turek's Hummingbird Spot YouTube channel and be amazed by this vivacious bird!