Hummingbird Video

I've got another low-res video for everyone! This is one I made last year. Its of a Costa's hummingbird (Calypte costae) female feeding on our desert penstomen (Penstomen pseudospectabilis). The Costa's are our resident hummingbirds and are a great entertainment for us. The males have shiney purple gorgets and bold attitudes. My friend Laura can attest to that. During one of her visits she was wearing a red coat, and our male hummer wouldn't leave her alone whenever she was outside. He would hover just a couple feet from her and watch her every move!

In this video, as low quality and fuzzy as it is (the original is so much better... YouTube really loses out on the resolution), you can see that the hummingbird has a very big belly. That's because this female is ready to lay her eggs. I would see her visit these penstomens every day to feed. The following day that I took this video, she was about half that size! She must have laid her eggs that day, which can explain her need for so much feeding!

As an intro to the movie, I'll also leave you with this photo of one of our African spur-thighed tortoise (Geochelone sulcata) babies sitting under the penstomens. As you can see in the photo, her name is Buffy. And yes, that IS from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".

For your viewing pleasure, Costa's Hummingbird: