A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN AMERICAN HUMMINGBIRD
Short Stories  Page 2
GARDEN PARTY
Story by:  Lizz Burris (AR)    Photos by : Von Ptake (MI)
   Larry and I race through the pastures and fields, stopping only to quickly check out occasional mulleins and a couple of fence posts covered in honeysuckle and trumpet vine. We chatter and fuss at each other as hummingbirds do, but are only playing.  Then as we make our way to a nearly restaurant, I spy some orchids at the edge of the woods near the pond.  Larry has zipped on ahead so I stop to investigate.
    A quick visit to each flower is a delightful treat and to think I have it all to myself.  I gloat.  A small swarm of gnats near the stream’s edge tops my meal off.  So I sit above it, cleaning my beak with my tongue.  Just watching the world around me as I rest.
    But for a hummingbird, sitting still is not an easy task, so off I go again to recheck the orchids before buzzing on off to meet Larry at the house beyond the pond.
    “What took you so long?” chirps Larry as I fly down and into this hidden garden.
   “Did you know the orchids were blooming down by the wood’s edge?”  I asked as I landed on a feeder nearby and took a long soothing drink.
    “Really?  I’ll have to check that out.” Larry hovers near a mandevilla flower on a trellis, then zips up to the feeder to chase me off.
    “Hey now!” I chirp, hovering now that I’ve been nearly knocked off my perch. “There’s another perch.  Use it.  We can share you know!”  I reclaim my perch and continue sipping as Larry settles himself at another feeder hole across from me. The morning sun was now high in the sky.
    Soon I was full and flew off to a lower limb on an apple tree to preen.  Larry followed soon there after and we began our games of chase and play fighting with an occasional visit to the little round feeder for a quick boast of energy.
   Suddenly we notice a female has flown in and is watching us play.  She eases her way down to the feeder and grabs a drink before zipping back up on a wisteria vine.  We continue our game as if she wasn’t there.  As I fly up to tease Larry and then off to a hickory limb, I see the new little female rush down for another sip.
    Larry races over to the feeder to introduce himself.  She flies back to her vine with Larry right behind her.  They perch on the vine several feet a part chattering back and forth at each other.  Meanwhile I have spotted a crepe myrtle bush and proceeded to check it out before visiting the feeder again.
    “Buddy!” calls Larry from the wisteria, “Come meet Prissy.  She’s feeding little ones.”
    I fly up to them and we chatter away our introductions.  She seems like a very nice little lady, raising her first brood not far away.  Periodically one of us flies down for a quick sip before returning to our perch and continuing our visit.
    Without warning, we hear a noise and see a human walking out to the feeders.  We scatter to branches father from the feeder to watch the human hang a new feeder with fresh nectar in it.  The human spots Prissy and makes a soft cooing sound.  Curiously Larry moves closer to the new feeder and slides in for a quick taste.  The human turns and Larry runs back for safety. The human continues making its melodic cooing sound as it faces Larry.
    Then just as quickly as the human appeared, it disappeared and Larry sneaks in for another sip.  “Hey guys!  This is so good.  Better come try some.” he chirps.
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   Quickly I race down to try the new feeder and find it just perfect to my taste. Prissy soon follows and drinks a good bit before running off between the trees to her nest.  Soon she returns for another sip as Larry and I continue our chasing games.
    “Prissy, how long before your babies fly?” I asked
    “Just a few more days” she chirps happily.  “And then I’ll be free again.”
    “Are you going to nest again this year?” questions Larry.
    “I’m not sure.  I may have enough time before going south.  I’ll just have to wait and see.” she chirps as Larry chases her around the apple tree then back to the feeder.  But he lets her grab a sip before including her in our garden party.
   While Larry’s back is turned I slip in to grab a sip then back to the apple tree.  He continues to play ‘Stay Away from my Feeder’ with Prissy.  She laughs and giggles at his antics as he flashes his brilliant gorget at her and begins to do the mating dance.
    They seem to be hitting it off and I feel like a third wheel.  After a fast feather adjustment, I swing down for several short sips.
    “I’ll leave you two alone.  I have some place else to go.”  Then I head back to the woods and the orchids for another tasty treat.