Tucson Hummingbirds

End of February, and the spirit is upon them: the hummingbirds in our yard are bolder and noisier than ever. Female Anna’s and Costa’s Hummingbirds are busily scooping up cobwebs from neglected corners, while their males perch high and sing loud, chasing each other from the feeders like so many feathered dogs at so many sugarwater mangers.

And our female Broad-billed Hummingbird, faithful to our feeders for several months now, still lingers, stuttering through the mesquites and hackberries and occasionally giving chase to one of the smaller birds at the feeders. She has exhibited no nesting behavior yet, but that’s hardly a surprise: the species is uncommon at best here in the dry northwestern foothills, and we expect her to retreat to a more typical riparian habitat when she starts feeling broody later this spring.