There are over 350 species of hummingbirds in the world. We don't have them where I live, though we have sunbirds, which are reminiscent of hummingbirds because they too are small and iridescent.
Last year during Birdtober I wrote about the Vervain Hummingbird, an island endemic, here, for an Artist's Choice day. This time I decided to write about hummingbirds in general.
Most are between three and four inches long
But they can fly 500 miles non-stop, alone.
Most weigh less than half an ounce
But they can visit 1000 flowers in one day.
A nest the size of a golf ball, eggs the size of jelly beans,
But they eat twice their body weight in 24 hours.
Heartbeat of 1200 beats per minute while flying
Slows down to almost nothing while sleeping.
To rest up for another day of being
Tiny
But
Mighty.
©Ruth Bowen Hersey
Here's another source of hummingbird facts.
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