Re: [cobirds] Hummer help - Arapahoe

This has nothing to do with the hummer issue, but the territorial defense brought to mind an interesting event I witnessed a couple days ago. I decided to make a run through the RM Arsenal and took a walk out to Havana Ponds. I noted a sub-adult bald eagle flying over and continued looking about. Suddenly the eagle seemed to be flying erratically. I checked it out and it was being harassed by…..an avocet. I've seen a lot of raptors being attacked by other birds, but this was a first.

Norm Lewis

Lakewood

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 25, 2025, at 7:47 PM, DAVID A LEATHERMAN <daleatherman@msn.com> wrote:



Jared

Female broad-tailed hummingbirds are ferocious in defense of a nest. I have seen them go after fox squirrels many times and even watched one female run off a fledged Great Horned Owl oblivious enough to land in her nest spruce.

Dave Leatherman

Get Outlook for iOS

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From: cobirds@googlegroups.com <cobirds@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Jared Del Rosso <jared.delrosso@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 24, 2025 6:40:51 PM
To: Colorado Birds <cobirds@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [cobirds] Hummer help - Arapahoe

 

This afternoon, I watched a hummingbird that I think is a Broad-tailed dive at Lesser Goldfinches. In flight, the hummingbird flashed its tail, which included noticeable orange coloring. The hummingbird was definitely not an adult male. It lacked the gorget and didn't make the trilling call during its dives. It's throat seemed spotted. The light's a little tough for clean views with my binoculars, whose lenses aren't clean enough for a clean view of a tiny bird in tough light. I lost the bird during a trip inside to nab my camera. 

So if I have the identification to species correct: is this a first-year male? Have they already left nests (I suspect not, at least around here)? Or do the females also dive at other birds? (I'm not seeing a reference to females Broad-tailed Hummingbirds diving in Birds of the World.) 

I'll work on getting a better view...or better yet, a photo.

- Jared Del Rosso

Centennial, CO

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