The thrill of a lifetime!

by Bill McClure
(Basye, VA, USA)

Yeah, I know I don't look too thrilled in the picture, but that's only because the slightest movement, including smiling, will chase them off. It's really hard to sit in front of the video camera waiting for this to happen with a fake, forced smile on your face! In any case, this was taken in August 2008 when I had the most hummingbirds I've ever seen in my life. Here in Virginia, we always get the most during the late summer and fall migration when the ruby-throats are heading back down toward Mexico. I had so many zipping around on my deck, I thought it would be fun to feed them by hand with a small feeder. After they started coming to me for that, I just raised my other hand to give them something to perch on! One of my sisters said I must be a "hummingbird whisperer" if they trusted me that much. Sometimes people think this picture has been photoshopped, but it's actually a frame capture from a video which shows the whole thing happening in complete detail. It can be viewed here: http://www.vimeo.com/6741939