Flying Crackheads

When we first moved in we decided it would be fun to put a hummingbird feeder outside the dining room window so we could watch the birds while we ate our meals. At first we would get very excited whenever we saw a little green flittering bird sip at the nectar. It has been over a month since we had the feeder up and I have come to this conclusion: hummingbirds are the crackheads of the avian world.

These little boogers fight constantly over the feeder. We filled the feeder up yesterday and all day there were at least 6 hummingbirds fighting over the feeder. At one point four or them reached a shaky alliance and decided they wanted the nectar more than they wanted to fight and all four of them drank at the same time. The alliance was short lived, however and they were soon chasing and spearing at each other once again.

This morning, this little female has laid claim to the feeder and has decided the best way to protect the last few precious drops is to sit on the feeder. She's had to chase off a few competitors but she's been sitting there off and on for about a half and hour. I guess it's hers now. She was eyeing me rather suspiciously as I took her photo through the window. Silly little crackhead.