The dawn chorus starts well before first light in Mazatlan. While it's still dark, an early bird starts calling out his koo-koo-roo-koo-koo at precisely marked intervals; he, or his companions, will keep it up all morning. As the sky clears, others join him with a medley of clicks, whistles, peeps, and sleepy mutterings.
From my upstairs window in the hostel, I can see them bouncing through the bougainvillea, brown sparrows and yellow-breasted birds, and blue-black grackles. A blue-green hummingbird darts from flower to flower; I can never quite get the camera in position before he's gone on to the next branch.
I met one later, down on the street, too busy with tubes full of nectar to notice me a few feet away.
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| I think this may be a female Ruby-throated hummer. Green back, white spot behind eye, black tail with white tip. |
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| Her beak is slightly down-curved. She inserts it deeply into the ripe flowers, the ones with ragged tips. |
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| She has a bit of dead plant material stuck to one foot. It doesn't seem to slow her down. |
Beautiful!! These are such great pictures of the hummingbird - they are notoriously difficult to photograph. Here in South Florida we get the Ruby Throated hummingbirds in winter. We also have Grackles and sparrows. I won't tell the hummers we get about those gorgeous yellow flowers in Mexico or we won't see them again next year!!
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