Hummingbird Feeding ..

[JFG]

Hummingbird Feeding R5 Mark II RF200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM Taken HandheldHummingbird Feeding R5 Mark II RF200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM Taken Handheld

Last Saturday I returned to my hummingbird spot, and the place was buzzing with young birds darting, diving, and whipping into those crazy tornado spins. I tried to nail a tornado shot, but they were too quick, too chaotic, too mischievous for me this round. Still, the photos I did get were fantastic, and that tornado moment is now locked into my bucket list for the next visit.

[Tintype_18]

Excellent photos. We have had many hummingbirds recently. Might be feeding prior to migration. What lens speed did you use to catch the wings?

[JFG]

Thanks, John, I was shooting at 1/2000s to freeze the wings.
You’re right: a bunch of them were feeding hard, stocking up energy for migration.  Anna’s Hummingbirds are mostly non‑migratory, with only short‑distance movements.
Allen’s Hummingbirds are a mix, some subspecies migrate, others stay put.  But Rufous Hummingbirds are the true long‑distance athletes, traveling nearly 4,000 miles between their breeding grounds in Alaska and northwest Canada and their wintering sites in Mexico. They follow a clockwise migration loop: heading north along the Pacific Coast in spring, then returning south through the Rockies in late summer and fall.