All year small numbers of Anna’s Hummingbirds visit our hummingbird feeders in Olympia—this one on 25 October 2020. I have written before that the bird’s scientific describer wrote that this species was one of the most gorgeous hummingbirds, as he named it after the Duchess of Rivoli, Anna de Belle Massena. Males turn their head from side to side, flashing the brilliant iridescence as a signal to other hummingbirds (Clark and Russell 2020). In recent years, this species's range has expanded from California into Texas and British Colombia. How does a nectar and insect-seeking bird survive Washington’s cold, wet winter? (It was 30 degrees this morning.) These conditoons do kill these hummingirds, which can not suriviie an entire day without food. Starvatopm os a major cause of mortality. Biologists assume that the expanding range is due to the hummingbirds living in human-altered landscapes where people often feed provide bird feeders.
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