So this post is about Hummingbirds at the Dripping Springs National Recreation Area, which is a 10 minute drive up the hills on the east side of Las Cruces. We drove up there with friends visiting from Austin two days ago, and Dennis got transfixed by the Hummingbirds and took 299 pictures of them.

Most of these, but not all, are Rufous Hummingbirds migrating south. They are the ones with redish-orange body feathers. The females also typically have a bright red spot on their throat. But there are other breeds that we are not sure of.

And in the pictures where it looks like they might be lovers or might be fighting, they are fighting. Hummers are very territorial and defend food sources as much as they can - there were only 3 feeders, and there were probably over 50 birds. (And a few wasps.) The Rufous were interlopers.


Female Rufous Hummingbird

 Male Broad-tailed Hummingbird

 Another Male Broad-tailed

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous (and a wasp) in flight as a female Broad-tailed feeds

 Female Broad-tailed

 Female Rufous facing off the others at the feeder

 

 Female Rufous at rest

 Female Broad-tailed at rest