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Fall brings annual hummingbird migration
Autumn is hummingbird season in Texas, as thousands of these tiny creatures move through the state on their southward migration to Mexico and Central America.
Nature enthusiasts welcome them with old-fashioned Texas hospitality, readying their gardens of nectar-producing plants and putting up special feeders filled with fresh sugar water.
“Essentially, all the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that breed in the eastern half of the United States and Canada – estimated at 7.3 million – migrate along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico each fall,” said John Arvin, the Observatory’s Research Coordinator.
The male hummers grab your attention with their striking throat feathers, which act like a prism to bend light into a shimmering red spectrum. Females and juveniles lack the scarlet throat – though juvenile males often show red dots on the throat. But they all have one purpose – engorging enough nectar to bulk up their body fat so they’ll have enough fuel for their migratory flight.
Many Ruby-throats will travel 600 miles straight across the Gulf to the Yucatan Peninsula, and some will fly around the edges of the Gulf to points in Mexico. All will ultimately wind up in southern Mexico and Central America, as far south as Costa Rica, for the winter.
Come on out and watch the banding, adopt a hummingbird, browse the Nature Store, walk the nature trails, or buy a plant to attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
Hummingbird season
Come on out and watch the banding, adopt a hummingbird, browse the Nature Store, walk the nature trails, or buy a plant to attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
These informative lectures will round out the festival:
Sept. 6 - Cherie and Glenn McBride will perform Tiny Bird Songs.
Sept. 13 - John Arvin, Research Biologist at GCBO, will present his Hummingbirds of the Americas program.
Sept. 20 - naturalist Gary Clark, will uncover the mysteries of basic bird identification.
Sept. 27 - Master Bird Bander, Charlie Brower, will answer all your questions about hummingbirds.
Go to www.gcbo.org for a printable map to the Sanctuary or call (979) 480-0999 for directions.
Nature enthusiasts welcome them with old-fashioned Texas hospitality, readying their gardens of nectar-producing plants and putting up special feeders filled with fresh sugar water.
“Essentially, all the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that breed in the eastern half of the United States and Canada – estimated at 7.3 million – migrate along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico each fall,” said John Arvin, the Observatory’s Research Coordinator.
The male hummers grab your attention with their striking throat feathers, which act like a prism to bend light into a shimmering red spectrum. Females and juveniles lack the scarlet throat – though juvenile males often show red dots on the throat. But they all have one purpose – engorging enough nectar to bulk up their body fat so they’ll have enough fuel for their migratory flight.
Many Ruby-throats will travel 600 miles straight across the Gulf to the Yucatan Peninsula, and some will fly around the edges of the Gulf to points in Mexico. All will ultimately wind up in southern Mexico and Central America, as far south as Costa Rica, for the winter.
Come on out and watch the banding, adopt a hummingbird, browse the Nature Store, walk the nature trails, or buy a plant to attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
Hummingbird season
Come on out and watch the banding, adopt a hummingbird, browse the Nature Store, walk the nature trails, or buy a plant to attract hummingbirds and butterflies.
These informative lectures will round out the festival:
Sept. 6 - Cherie and Glenn McBride will perform Tiny Bird Songs.
Sept. 13 - John Arvin, Research Biologist at GCBO, will present his Hummingbirds of the Americas program.
Sept. 20 - naturalist Gary Clark, will uncover the mysteries of basic bird identification.
Sept. 27 - Master Bird Bander, Charlie Brower, will answer all your questions about hummingbirds.
Go to www.gcbo.org for a printable map to the Sanctuary or call (979) 480-0999 for directions.
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