They say that hummers know the person who fills their feeders. I’ve seen that to be true at Madera Canyon, but this is the first time I’ve had it at home. Our little male, immature Calliope Hummer seems to follow us around the north end of the home. When we’re on the deck at our table, there he is on the perch you see above. When we move to the office, he perches on the feeder, which he defends even against the obnoxious, bigger Rufus that thinks it owns everything. And photographically, he’s made it real simple, as I can walk up to him, move up or down, all around, and all he does is pose. He’s a lot of fun, and we are enjoying our time with him as we know he’ll be heading south in the next few weeks. But for the time being, it’s like now, we can’t shake him!

Sharon & I are enjoying an explosion of young HY hummers buzzing us nearly at every corner of The Ranch. We have a high-top table on the deck where we like to have our coffee breaks during the day. One of the six hummingbird feeders is located there, about four feet from Sharon’s head. The last couple of days, it’s been hard to have a conversation, the buzzing is so loud. It’s like a tennis match, though, as we watch all the kids chase each other all over the place. Last evening, the first immature HY Calliope appeared (NA smallest at 3″), and it fell hard for Sharon. It perches right next to her, barely leaving to feed. It seems quite habituated already, permitting me to stand up and move to make the shot. But it’s a running joke around the house right now with all the activity. “Honey, who’s watching the kids?”

They got their name from their storing vast quantities of Acorns that they feed on throughout the year. Whole trees appear to have been shot up by machine gun fire, but upon closer examination, you find they are holes filled with Acorns. Living in the western oak forests, they are in a colony, each with separate duties, from guard to raising the young. They are continually talking to each other, continually, I wish I could understand them as it’s quite a conversation. At Madera Canyon, they keep up company as we photograph the hummingbirds. And at times when there is a shortage of water, they visit the feeders to drink. As you can see, the hummingbird feeder isn’t really made for a woodpecker, but they can get their tongue into the small slots as they hang on. They are fun to watch and photograph. The Acorn Woodpeckers are quite the characters.