Banding a Hummingbird

My husband first saw our little winter visitor right before he went into the hospital. He just got a quick look and then she was gone. Several days later, the day after Thanksgiving, I got a pretty good look as she drank from the feeder by our porch and tentatively identified it as a female or immature Selasphorus, probably a Rufous. We leave our hummingbird feeders up, filled with fresh sugar water solution year round because it is not uncommon to have a winter hummingbird in our area.

In a few days, I was able to get some photographs of the new arrival and I emailed a few shots to my friend, Linda Beall, our Covington Hummingbird bander. She also thought that it was a Rufous (Selasphorus rufus), but her knowledge and experience enabled her to narrow the identification down to an immature female.

Hummingbird banders are an elite group that are permitted by the USGS Bird Banding Lab, to humanely capture and band hummingbirds. Many of these individuals are self-taught volunteers who have apprenticed with an experienced, permitted bander. They pay for their own equipment and transportation to banding sites and gather much valuable data about the movement and habits of these tiny birds.

The banders with USGA permits here in Louisiana use specially designed traps with remote control devices to capture hummingbirds.

Even in a cage, a hummingbird is difficult to catch, but expert, Linda soon has the feisty little bird under control.

The Hummingbird is placed in a mesh bag for safe keeping, while Linda sets up her equipment.

Since hummingbird bands are so tiny, they may be overlooked. Linda always checks to see if someone has already banded a bird. If a band is found, the number is recorded and the USGA Banding Lab is contacted to see who banded the bird and where. This hummer had not been previously banded.

The band is placed on the left leg and is checked to make sure that the fit is right. The band number is recorded on the data sheet.

Each band has a unique number code which is registered to an individual bander.

When a bander receives his/her bands they come in sheets and must be cut out and made into the tiny bands. There are about 25 hummingbird bands on the diaper pin on the top left of the photo.

Most female Rufous hummingbirds have a circular pattern of red feathers in the middle of their throats. The number of feathers varies from bird to bird, so Linda counts the number of feathers present at the time of banding.

Before migrating, hummingbirds build up a layer of fat. Linda uses the straw to blow the feathers aside to see how much fat is on each bird that she bands. Our Rufous female has very little fat, so she will probably stay at our place for a while longer.

The tail feathers of our Rufous have already grown into the adult plumage. Notice the feathers with the nipple like tip (near the middle of the tail) that are rust and green. These are one of the key identifiers of a Rufous hummingbird and distinguishes them from other Selasphorus like Allens or Broad-tailed.

The condition of the wings is checked. The first primary of this female Rufous has grown back about 50%. Because of this, an accurate wing measurement could not be taken.

Very young hummingbirds have many "washboard" type bumps on the top of their bills called corrugation. Most of these bumps are worn away during the first year. Our bird has 50% corrugation.

Measurements are another way to determine the species of a hummingbird. Rufous hummingbirds fall into an established range. Linda uses calipers to get a precise measurement of the bill.

The tail is also measured to see if it falls within the given range for Rufous hummingbirds.

Weighing the bird is another way to establish how much fat has been stored as well as the general condition of the bird. The scale was set at zero with the stocking bag on it. The measurement is in grams.

Female and immature male Rufous hummingbirds have white tips on the 3 outside tail feathers. The rust coloring at the base of the tail feathers is another Rufous trait.

Hummingbird feathers are irridescent and look dark, except when the sunlight hits them just right. This female has a nice red gorget spot.

Before a bird is released, Linda places a spot of water soluble liquid paper on the top of its head. This makes a visual identification easier if there are more than one bird at a location. Sometimes, you think you are seeing the same bird and after putting on the paint ID spot, you realize that there are actually two birds.

Linda placed the female Rufous in my hand for our last photo op. She sat there for a couple of minutes until Linda blew on her tail. Then she was off and back to her favorite brushy spot on the west side of the yard.