Saw Mill Press

Lottridge, Ohio--7 July 2007. I have always known that hummingbirds are bold and fierce, but I never considered that they might be dangerous until I heard this story about hummingbirds that was told to me recently by Audra Ackley, 92, Lottridge, Ohio. The story goes like this:

"Right here on this porch, when my husband was a young man, a hummingbird flew head on into the left cheek of an elderly man sitting next to him. The full length of the hummingbird's beak penetrated this man's cheek, and the bird was stuck. The man had to pull the hummingbird out of his cheek. The mishap left the man with an infection, and even when the wound healed, his face never looked right again."

Having heard this story as Audra tells it, I will always think twice when I hear that too-big-for-a-bee buzzing sound created by the miniscule ruby-throat's powerful wings.

Inspired to find out what else I did not know about hummingbirds, I studied hummingbirds.net and National Geographic to find out more. Take a look at these informative sites, then try the quiz below.

1) At rest, a hummingbird’s heart beats at the rate of about

a) 5 beats per minute .

b) 50 beats per minute.

c) 500 beats per minute.

d) 5000 beats per hour.

2) Which of the following is not a food source for hummingbirds?

a) the nectar of flowering plants.

b) honey.

c) spiders and soft-bodied insects.

d) a solution of four parts water and one part table sugar.

3) The 330 species of hummingbird are found

a) only in North America.

b) only in the new world (North, Central and South America).

c) only in North America, Central America and the Gallapagos Islands.

d) all over the world.

4) The reason we don’t see Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds, the most common species of hummingbird in Ohio, during the winter is because they

a) migrate southward to Mexico and Central America to winter over.

b) hibernate like some mammals.

c) like many insects, live only one season, long enough to reproduce, after which time they die as the winter months approach.

d) none of the above.

5) Praying mantises can capture and consume hummingbirds.

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

6) Hummingbirds can fly at speeds up to 500 miles per hour.

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

7) Hummingbirds can consume 50-200% of their body weight in food during the course of a day.

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

8) Hummingbirds are often seen fighting with each other because they are fiercely territorial.

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

9) Hummingbirds can be found northward as far as Maine and Canada.

a) TRUE

b) FALSE

10)Hummingbirds are a unique family of birds because they are invertebrates (don’t have a backbone).

a) TRUE

b) FALSE