Here's my hummingbird ...

We've had a wonderful patch of bee balm planted in our backyard that has had hummingbird visitors for many years. As much as I try, I have yet to get a good photo - they are so QUICK! Here's my latest (poor) attempts: (You can click on the photos, go to Flickr, and see them larger) These little birds are a delight. Even though we see several every day, it's still an occasion to stop what I'm doing and marvel at nature. Hummingbird stories: One day, I was sprinkling the flowers and a hummingbird repeatedly flew into and out of the water drops. She was taking a shower! Hummingbirds are very territorial. When more than one arrive at the same flower bed at the same time, there's a very loud shrieking dispute until one backs off and leaves. We have seen the looser sit on a branch to wait her turn. Just last week, we watched a hummingbird fly into a swarm of small gnats. She darted quickly from bug to bug, eating them. We've never seen that before! I thought all hummingbirds did was suck the nectar from flowers. This little bird caught so many bugs, she had to sit on the fence netting around the vegetables and rest. She sat there a good five minutes before she could fly. Talk about over eating!