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Hummingbirds can be found all through the Americas including the Caribbean. Known for their ability to hover and their skill at backward flying, hummingbirds can hover by rapidly flapping their wings at high speeds up to 80 times a second.

The Bee Hummingbird is the smallest bird in the world at just two inches long and weighing around 2 grams. The Giant Hummingbird is the largest hummingbird at around eight inches long and weighing about 25 grams. All the hummingbirds have the fastest metabolism of all birds and to sustain this they need to consume more than their own weight in food every day. In order to do this they have to visit hundreds flowers each day to gather the nectar. They have long tongues and beaks so they can reach right into the blooms. They are able to decrease their metabolisms when at rest, unlike the majority of other animals with a high metabolisms. This lengthens their lifespan, which has been reported as long as 16 years.

Planting A Hummingbird Friendly Garden

To draw hummingbirds to your garden plant brightly coloured shrubs and flowers. The sense of smell of Hummingbirds is very poor but they can be attracted by intense colours. Placing a hummingbird feeder in your garden or on your patio will catch the attention of these charming birds. Some annuals to plant include salvia, petunia, impatiens, firespike and jewelweed. Perennials you could plant include bee balm, costa, yucca, canna, lupine, cardinal flower and foxglove. For bushes and trees plant buddleia, lantana, tree tobacco, mimosa, flame acanthus and azalea.

Do not use any pesticides in your garden as this will eradicate insects and bugs that hummingbirds eat. They will also leave deposits on the flowers which the hummingbirds may consume. Also provide plenty of places to rest as hummingbirds spend approximately eighty percent of the time perching on clothes lines, twigs etc. Supply plants that will provide nesting materials to be a focus for the females. They favor feathery nesting material from trees such as eucalyptus and willow and from mosses and ferns.

Hanging up vibrantly colored, specially made hummingbird feeders in your backyard will exert a pull on the hummingbirds. A good suggestion is to attach red ribbons that will blow all around the feeder. It is also a great idea to provide feeders at different heights as hummingbird species all have different preferences. Species that prefer plants that are low growing will visit a feeder placed lower whereas species that feed on taller flowers and shrubs will prefer to visit a feeder placed in a higher position. Hummingbirds are also extremely territorial and one hummingbird may perhaps guard a single feeder and stop other birds from feeding. Put no less than 3 feeders at different heights all around your backyard.

Hummingbirds love to bathe in the mist on foliage so you could put a mister near to some broadleaved vegetation to give them a bathing place.

How to Make Hummingbird Nectar

Make a sweet nectar by blending together a cup of sugar with four cups of water that has been boiled. Let it cool then store in the fridge. Unused nectar can be stored safely for up to seven days. Thoroughly clean hummingbird feeders weekly by rinsing with a mixture of 1 cup of vinegar to four cups of water then rinsing with clean water. Fill with the sugar solution and hang in the shade. Don't use food coloring or sweeteners. Also do not use honey as it may ferment and create a a poisonous fungus. Replace the nectar solution in the feeder every three days or more often when the weather is hotter.

In Conclusion

It's easy to make a garden that will appeal to these lovely birds. Give them the food they like and a safe setting and hummingbirds will visit your garden often.

More Information on feeding wild birds and some cheap bird feeders to buy at Garden Bird Feeders or Garden Garden Bird Feeders UK

Some birds have a way of bringing out the worst in humanity. Perhaps it is an unconscious fear implanted by movies and literature. Take for example the Alfred Hitchcock movie "The Birds" and you get a sense of how ominous and even perhaps deadly some wild birds are to mankind. Look at what a flock of crows is called. It is called a murder. Certain birds have been associated with death and even as messengers of death. Perhaps it is just a bum rap but regardless, mankind has this fascination with anything avian.

The raven and the crow have definitely been portrayed in a bad light as the birds that you do not want to have around. Edgar Allen Poe turned the raven into a sinister messenger of doom with its cries of "nevermore." Readers have been fascinated with his portrayal of the raven. Even fairytales have plugged away at the image of the crow/raven. Take for example Disney's classic tale of "Sleeping Beauty." The villainess has a crow/raven that is used as her evil spy.

The wild bird definitely deserves some respect. It is just like other wild animal. You have to keep in mind that it is territorial, will defend itself and has to find a food source. And while crows/ravens have received some bad press thanks to authors and filmmakers, vultures and other carrion eating birds have repulsed mankind for eons. This bird species is a scavenger. Anytime you see vultures or buzzards circling in the air, you know that there is either something dying or something that has already died. Most people do not set up bird feeders to attract these types of birds. They want colorful birds, songbirds and delicate hummingbirds to grace their gardens and yards.

Perhaps it is time that people got over their fear of the birds that have gotten such a tough break in literature and movies. You do not have to worry about going outside and a murder of crows attacking you for no reason. The raven is not a symbol of death or a portent of bad things ahead. They are just two legged, winged wild animals that serve a specific function in the animal kingdom.