Wildlife & Related

[Great-Kazoo]

Verrry carefully, with mist nets and traps around flowers and feeders in the gardens. And, with the appropriate federal and state research permits. We have banded 12K+ hummingbirds of 12 species in six states and have discovered new aspects of hummingbird biology, added two new species to the CO state list and might soon tally the 500th species to the official list of Colorado birds. High drama in the ornithology world.

I have an old book with 500+ different hummingbirds. They're almost like snowflakes, so small yet so different.

[Hummer]

I have an old book with 500+ different hummingbirds. They're almost like snowflakes, so small yet so different.

They are amazing animals, like us in so many ways and with most of the same organs. But proportionate to their size, hummingbirds have the largest brain, heart, lungs, breast muscles, kidneys and liver of any animal on earth. They've fascinated me since childhood.

A 4-gram hummingbird has a basic metabolic rate of 1,400 calories per kilogram. If a man had as high a weight-specific metabolic rate his daily intake of food would be about twice his body weight. Also, his temperature would be over 750 degrees Fahrenheit and he would use up to 155,000 calories per day. If a hummer weighed as much as us, we would be a tender little morsel for them.

[Hummer]

Another wildlife rescue today, of a young Great Horned Owl on the ground and unable to fly. It was pretty seriously injured, possibly from a night time collision with the wire fence in the background. Powerlines and wire fences take a toll on raptors, especially night flying owls. It was taken to the wildlife vet with hope for a recovery.