From: Dave Patton <wdpbird@MSN.COM>
To: HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu
<HUMNET-L@listserv.lsu.edu>
Date: Thursday, April 05, 2001 9:38 AM
Subject: 2001 weight study

> My Grandmother has a great hummingbird yard and played
host to 5 Rufous
>that stayed to completion of their molt. One immature male
cooperated
nicely
>with a study to monitor weight, molt and his departure in
spring migration.
>I have conducted this study successfully during two previous
springs, but
>they were both with the same male Rufous hummingbird. He
was an immature
>male the
>spring of 1998, and a return adult for the spring of 1999.
This time I had
>another immature male Rufous, and it was nice to have a
different bird to
>include in the study.
> He took control of the feeder at the greenhouse window with
a little
>coaxing, and I was able to video tape his weight at each
feeding. Every
>couple of days I would move the feeder into direct sun, and
video a feeding
>at 10,000th of a second. This gave a clear image of the wing
and the stage
>of molt.
> These are some of the highlights from this season.
>1/18/01, Immature Male Rufous, first observed
>1/28/01, Banded, 3:00PM, weight 3.7g, wing molt=Primary
1-4 new, P5
missing,
>P6-10 old.
>3/12/01, First began to video feedings.
>3/30/01, Primary 9 and gorget complete, marking the
completion of molt
>4/01/01, First day that weight showed an increase, .6g above
daily range
>4/02/01, Made 4 early feedings, reaching 4.4g at 6:28AM
CST. Last feeding.
>
> A few comparisons: the first hummer gained weight over 2
days as an
>immature reaching 5.2 grams and departing on 3/15/98. The
next spring, he
>gained weight over 3 days reaching 5.6 grams and departing
on 3/10/99.
> A few interesting similarities between each study are that
they completed
>winter molt before gaining weight, gained weight rapidly,
consumed an
>unusually large amount of nectar the first hour of day light on
the day of
>their
>departure, and each was last recorded during the first hour of
daylight.
> Now the fun is over, and the work begins. I wonder if John
Boy hires
out
>for scientific writing. It will need some big words.
>
>Dave Patton
>Lafayette, La
>