HUMMINGBIRD
LAND OF THE
HUMMINGBIRD
Sunday Express
Section 2
September 24, 2000
Page 22
The
western hemisphere's richest gift to the avian world are the
320 species of hummingbirds which come in varied hues. The humming sound produced by their wings in
flight is responsible for the name hummingbird.
These
gem-like tiny birds were once used for jewelry in the 19th century
when millions were shipped from South America and the West Indies to European
markets. They were fashioned into pins,
brooches, and other accessories.
One
London dealer imported 400,000 skins from the West Indies in one year alone,
according to reports.
Originating
in the equatorial South America, the majority of them still live there because
flowers are abundant and in bloom year-round.
There
are hummingbird species spread throughout North, Central and South America and
the Caribbean. Trinidad and Tobago was
in fact once referred to as the land of the hummingbird, because these birds
were such a common sight.
Commonly
called "colibri', there are just about 13 species found in this country.
Hummingbirds
evolved their style of helicopter flight over thousands of years. They can fly straight up, straight down,
sideways and backwards. Flying at
speeds up to 60 mph, they can stop in an instant and hover in mid-air.
Hummingbirds
are very colourful with such species as the ruby-throated, violet-crowned,
Guiana coquette, crimson topaz, white-necked Jacobin, herran's thornhill and
Cuban emerald. Colour variations often
occur on the feathers of the head and along the front of the neck.
The
neck area is known as the gorget because it resembles a piece of medieval
armour. The hummingbird's feathers on
the neck are rainbow-like in colour, reflecting hues of green, purple and red. As the birds turn this way or that, they
appear to change colours before your eyes.
The
hummingbird is one of the smallest warm-blooded animals around. The smallest is the calliope hummingbird,
which weighs one-tenth of an ounce.
There is another small species in the Caribbean the size of a large bee.
Hummingbirds
live on nectar, which provide high calorie.
For protein they feed on insects found in flowers and on trees. Their long bills and tongues help in
plucking out food from the remote corners of blooming flowers.
Feeding
from flower to flower, hummingbirds have become very efficient pollinators,
gathering the fine dust of pollen and transporting them from plant to plant.
The
colour of a flower is as important as its shape in attracting a
hummingbird. Because red flowers stand
out prominently among green foliage, hummingbirds are attracted to them
easily. They also feed on flowers of
the colours orange, pink, yellow, blue and purple. However, hummingbirds cannot distinguish flowers by their
fragrance.