First Day of Winter

19

It’s the first day of winter, and the first real snowfall. A few flakes fell a few weeks ago, but it didn’t stick; what came today won’t last, but it’s pretty while it does

This morning I stood at the french doors to the back deck and noticed a puffed up little hummingbird sitting on the dwarf gingko just a foot or so from me. I watched him for a while and was a bit worried that he wasn’t ok because of how long he sat there, so close to where I stood on the other side of the glass.

But he was alert and watching everything going on around him. He hovered for a moment, settled on a different branch, and puffed up again. I watched him for awhile and fretted. Should I go out and see if he was ok? What would I possibly be able to do if he wasn’t. If he wasn’t well my bothering him wasn’t going to improve things, I’d just stress him and hasten his problems.

Eventually he disappeared and I looked to both feeders, but there was no sign of him. He’d flown away while I was on the couch doing something else.

Then he was back again an hour or so later. There were two towhees that are happily kicking as much soil and leaf matter around as possible in the pot below the branch he is perched on.

We went out to pick up some groceries and when we came home there was no sign of him. Then a half hour later, he was back again.

So I guess he’s fine, just hanging close to the house out of the falling snow and close to the feeders, and he must feel relatively safe because of the other birds in close proximity. It’s a bit odd though, to see one sit for so long, and to return again and again to perch, on a branch that is so exposed. He also doesn’t seem to be using the feeders as a primary source of energy, so he must have a secret place close by that has some insects….or someone else has a feeder with better tasting sugar water than ours is.

I sort of feel like he’s looking out at the snow falling in the yard with a bit of a “This weather is bullshit” attitude.