Collins Country

Creatures wise and wonderful

Today I saw my first hummingbird.  I don’t mean to say I’ve never seen one before; they are quite common in our area.  BUT, I’ve never seen one in my yard before.

I don’t grow flowers, and I don’t have feeders.  I have two cats (one who is a mighty hunter) and a noisy dog.  The fact that, until I planted my veggies, I spent little time back there might have something to do with it, too. 

I was sitting about three feet from the top corner of my “plot”, the hose gently trickling water down the channels between each plant when there he was; so pretty, with his dainty wings and shimmering feathers.  He flew off, much to my disappointment, but lit on a blackberry vine nearby.  I've always wondered what they looked like when their wings weren’t buzzing.

He came back and forth a few times before I figured out why he was hovering over my pumpkins… I’d conveniently left a “fresh water spring” for his bathing pleasure! 

It is a beautiful day; the soil was actually hot and dry under my bare feet (that’s as rare as hummingbirds in my back yard).  I’ve never seen a hummingbird bathe before.  Quick dips, first the beak, then the tail, a couple splashes here and there (very tiny splashes) and off into the woods. 

Now I feel I must have hummingbird feeders, but I can’t decide where to hang them.  The best view would be from my bedroom doors, but I can’t think how to hang them low enough for me to see them without them being in danger of being launched into the gulch every time we open the door.

Maybe I’d better skip it.  I don’t think my cats have heard "there's no such thing as a free lunch."