Date: Wed, 1 May 2002 13:38:52 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: "Wilkerson, Jordan T." Subject: Hummingdird bath Comments: cc: "Lynn Burroughs & Michael Graham (E-mail 2)" , "karen.salvini@noaa.gov" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" MDOsprey While the hummingbirds are beginning to stake their annual claim on our feeders, one male decided it was time for a bath. It seemed like a rather successful time-out since the other hummers continued the battle but respectfully let this guy play on the sideline unchecked. Now, I've watched hummers fly through mists several times and then perch nearby to scrub the parts the mist didn't reach, but I've never seen one take a full-on bath. This bird bath (the bigger/deeper of two in the yard) is usually enjoyed by robin-sized birds that often totally submerge themselves, so imagine this tiny bird on the rim trying to get wet without falling in. It was kind of like watching the "hokey pokey": first he dipped one wing in and shook it all about then he turned around and put the other wing in and shook it all about. (feel free to sing along). After a brief scrubbing session he turned around and put his tail in and shook it all about. Then he tested his new wings a number of times without launching. After a brief rest, apparently not happy with the first round of scrubbing, he began hovering above the pool dragging his tail and splashing his wing tips through the water. Since he was up and flying, he let a few drops from the dripper drop on his head so he could get behind the ears. Seeming to find this a more successful method, he repeated it until he couldn't possibly have forgotten anyplace. As soon as he dropped the appearance of bathing, the chase resumed... No hummingbirds were injured in the making of this story. Jordan Wilkerson Cloverly, MD Montgomery County jordan.wilkerson@jhuapl.edu jandk@jordanandkaren.com ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================