Think Like a Hummingbird

Los fans de la lógica,

Starting today, our schedule gets crazier!

We are headed to North Carolina tonight for a pelagic trip this weekend, and the trip entails a number of firsts: our first red-eye, our first time to NC, and our first East Coast pelagic trip, among others. There will probably be other firsts involving real Carolina BBQ and visiting some historic places, time permitting, but the focus is the boat.

But first, more birds!

The season of Fall migration is fast approaching for many birds, despite Summer being officially only a few weeks old. So, we have to use all our available time to track down birds in our area before they vanish to some other Spanish-speaking country.

This morning, for instance, we woke at 5AM (8AM in the East!) to chase an Allen's Hummingbird. There was a report yesterday of two of them at a park in the Oakland hills, so we beat traffic down there and spent a few hours looking around in a misty drizzle. Alas, it was in vain.

Then, the wife gets an idea: "Where else were they seen?" she asked, pensively.

A quick check of eBird said that there was a report a couple weeks ago at other local parks and at the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden.

"Well, " she asked, "if you were a hummingbird, would you rather be in a suburban neighborhood with feral cats, or in a manicured garden filled with lush flowering plants?"

Good point.

A short but hair-raising drive through the Berkeley campus and we're in the Gardens. We start in the California area, but all we find are Anna's Hummingbirds. Next, we tried the Mediterranean area, thinking that their climate was similar to ours, so maybe the birds would find something to their liking there. But, no hummingbirds at all.

"Hey, " says the brilliant wife, "There are no hummingbirds in Europe! So, maybe the plants haven't evolved to humminbird tastes, which explains why none are here! What other areas are nearby?"

Good point, part deux.

Down the path a bit was the South American section. And guess what? It was covered in Allen's Hummingbirds!

So, just remember...if you want to find a bird, you gotta think like a bird.

Now, off to Sacramento and our 10PM flight east!

Happy trails,
Me