# Don't aggrivate a hummingbird! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 10, 2011, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234 "2011-08-10T18:52:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/21 "2011-08-12T15:22:52Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > We have a hummingbird nest in the hanging lamp outside our front door. It gets re-used every year. I have photos of the little hummers growing up and then flying away here: Great shots. We had a nest a couple of years ago in a palo verde tree right outside,but it was so high up, had to use a stepladder to see inside. The nest was about the size of a quarter, and the eggs were really tiny. After the little guys hatched, we went up once to look. Terminally cute. We did not continue to go up and look as was afraid of spooking mama bird, but it did not take too long for them to fly away. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/22 "2011-08-12T15:34:24Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Surely you mean “milligram per milligram.” The “pound for pound” hummingbirds are called “helicopters.” ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/23 "2011-08-12T15:45:42Z")
Mockingbirds are also aggressive. At our previous home, one had nested in the huge bush next to the paper box. Getting the newspaper was a fight for your life. Interestingly enough, the bird was much more aggressive toward Mr. SCL than toward me. I usually just got scolded - he got divebombed. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/24 "2011-08-12T16:32:36Z")
I’m envious of all you with bold hummingbirds. I have one occasional visitor, but it’s shy and too elusive for photos. Although I was sitting outside earlier this week and after visiting some of the flowers in the garden, it hovered over my head and checked out my maple tree. What was that all about? What could it have been looking for? Bugs? Sap? Nesting places? ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/25 "2011-08-12T16:55:33Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > We have a hummingbird nest in the hanging lamp outside our front door. It gets re-used every year. I have photos of the little hummers growing up and then flying away here: > [One](http://www.flickr.com/photos/11822576@N08/6033689959/sizes/l/in/photostream/) > [Two](http://www.flickr.com/photos/11822576@N08/6033689987/sizes/l/in/photostream/) > [Three](http://www.flickr.com/photos/11822576@N08/6033689995/sizes/l/in/photostream/) These are amazing. Thanks for sharing them. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/26 "2011-08-12T17:10:11Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > These are amazing. Thanks for sharing them. 🙂 Thanks. Here is an older [photo](http://www.flickr.com/photos/11822576@N08/6035958048/sizes/l/in/photostream/) of momma on her nest outside our kitchen window. We have a very lush yard, and get lots of hummingbirds. ---
**Author:** ![Terraplane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Terraplane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terraplane)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2011, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/27 "2011-08-12T17:38:26Z")
> [@KlondikeGeoff](#): > > That’s interesting, but I have to take exception. From what I’ve read, and seen, the Roadrunner is by far the most aggressive. > > I have seen one pick up a rattlesnake and repeatedly slam it on the ground until it died. It then ate it whole (Beep! Beep!) Any carnivore is going to be aggressive towards its dinner, it’s kind of inherent in the process. But all the roadrunners I’ve seen have been pretty shy around people. I agree with SnakesCatLady about mockingbirds though. I’ve seen them attack people, cats, dogs, buzzards, and even hawks to protect their nest. I never understood why the hawks and cats don’t just eat the mockingbird, it seems like being dive bombed by a songbird should be like having pizza delivered for them. They never seem to though, I guess an angry mother has moral authority. ---
**Author:** ![ladysorrowfree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@ladysorrowfree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladysorrowfree)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/28 "2011-08-13T05:16:28Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by **Terraplane** > But all the roadrunners I’ve seen have been pretty shy around people. I work in an old office building, without window screens, in a rural area. The roadrunners here have very little fear of people. One has a habit of coming in through the open windows, investigating people’s offices, watching them work, and hopping back out again when his (her?) curiosity is satisfied. (And no, we have not been feeding them. They live very well on the large local population of snakes and blue-bellied lizards.) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/29 "2011-08-13T18:51:29Z")
Nice pictures, **beowulff**! I can’t seem to get any good pictures of mine, they’d attack me if I tried! My boss has a motivational poster in her office that shows a tiny kitten looking in the mirror. The kitten sees its’ reflection as a lion. I really think that’s how hummingbirds see themselves too. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/30 "2011-08-13T20:23:32Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > And yes, you haven’t truly lived until you’ve been roundly scolded by a hummingbird. 🙂 They scold? What do they sound like? I’ve seen lots of hummingbirds, but ain’t never heard one make a peep. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/31 "2011-08-13T20:33:48Z")
Ours are noisy – cute little chirpy sounds. I’ve wondered about their poop. It must be miniscule. ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/32 "2011-08-13T20:38:41Z")
Our buzzies are loud. Not only do they sound like bumblebees when they fly by, but they also twitter quite a lot at each other. (Not that kind of Twitter.) My mother has hearing loss and says she can’t hear them at all. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/33 "2011-08-13T21:31:50Z")
> [@Rysdad](#): > > They scold? What do they sound like? > > I’ve seen lots of hummingbirds, but ain’t never heard one make a peep. They sound like a nail being twisted in a an oversized hole. A metallic tweet or chirp that isn’t very musical. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/34 "2011-08-13T21:34:24Z")
> [@Dr.Girlfriend](#): > > Nice pictures, **beowulff**! I can’t seem to get any good pictures of mine, they’d attack me if I tried! > > My boss has a motivational poster in her office that shows a tiny kitten looking in the mirror. The kitten sees its’ reflection as a lion. I really think that’s how hummingbirds see themselves too. I read an article on hummingbirds awhile ago, and the the author said that while most people think of them as being like angels or fairies, he thinks of them more like miniature fighter pilots - fast, maneuverable, and very aggressive. ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/35 "2011-08-13T22:44:21Z")
We have a fuscia bush that the bunkers adore, and there are always a few buzzing around in it. They make a sharp almost metallic chirp sound. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/36 "2011-08-20T16:07:14Z")
More evidence for the “hummingbirds are kind of jerks” theory. I’m hanging out in the garden with a laptop and a camera waiting for a hummingbird to hit my feeder (as far as I know, there’s only one local but it was hitting it somewhat frequently earlier this week. After half an hour, not much luck. Then, all of a sudden, a dog fight. Two hummers flash past fighting for territory. So apparently, even though I have two hummingbird feeders, each containing 100 times a bird’s weight in nectar and multiple hanging plants, hummingbird 1 was staking out the territory and immediately leapt into action when hummingbird 2 showed up. Actually, both birds were kind of dicks, because they waited until the sun went behind a cloud to show up and feed. No good pics ☹ ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/37 "2011-08-20T18:30:38Z")
I hear mine chittering, loudly, all the time. They’re surprising noisy. I always see the male sitting quietly in a tree near the deck, keeping an eye on the nectar feeder. If any other hummingbird appears, there’s hell to pay! There just isn’t room for two or more hummingbirds on one deck! They prefer the fuschia hanging basket, but I’ve seen them buzzing around zinnias, salvia, roses, and even the hosta flowers. We have a bed of stargazer lillies, and they go right into a flower, out of sight. They’ll only be around for about 2 more weeks until they migrate, that’s a sure sign summer is ending. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/38 "2011-08-20T19:51:56Z")
My _Peterson’s Guide_ describes them as “pugnacious” and they aren’t kidding. Yeah, a weird high pitched short chirp. And when they fight, I sometimes here a “thud” from one ramming the other. Hey, there’s two feeders and I’ll make more. No need to fight ladies\*. Earlier this summer I found myself face to face with one. Really close up. It was flying to the nearby feeder and apparently didn’t notice I was walking by until the last second. Staring at one of those pointy beaks inches from my face was unnerving. - For some reason only females this year. So Ruby Throats without ruby throats. ---
**Author:** ![loshan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce73a5/32.png) [@loshan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/loshan)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2011, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/39 "2011-08-20T20:34:04Z")
At least once every summer I go down to our very small grocery store and they have all the doors open and the lights off. Why? Hummingbird in the store. They discovered that they couldn’t get them out of the store if they left the lights on. Can you imagine a “real” supermarket doing that? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2011, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234/40 "2011-08-21T16:53:49Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Earlier this summer I found myself face to face with one. Really close up. It was flying to the nearby feeder and apparently didn’t notice I was walking by until the last second. Staring at one of those pointy beaks inches from my face was unnerving. Apparently my hummingbird’s territorial instincts apply to mammals 20,000 times their mass. I was watering the fuschias yesterday and one buzzed a couple of feet away to make sure I wasn’t making away with any precious, precious nectar. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-aggrivate-a-hummingbird/592234.md?page=1)