The Hummingbird

Above is an image of the hummingbird, one of the fascinating and mysterious Nazca lines. According to the Hummingbird Migration Map hummingbirds have been sighted all around my area, including north of us, which means it won't be long before they make it into these hills in the Ozarks plateau area. It's time to get the hummingbird feeders out, if we can find them, that is. In case you don't know, it's best to use just sugar and plain water, no dye. Boil until sugar is dissolved, let it cool. Then put it in a red container, they can be found at any home/garden store or average department store. Find a good spot and enjoy the sight and sound of these marvelous creatures. If you do get hummer visitors be sure to keep your feeders full and clean. If you don't want to deal with the mess of sugar feeders plant a few bright red or pink flowers that should draw a few visitors of the hummer variety.

Now, for a little hummingbird lore. To the ancient Aztecs a figure of a hummingbird represented Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and chief deity of the great city of Tenochtitlan. That may sound a little odd until you consider that hummingbirds, though small in size, can be vicious fighters when it comes to food. To peoples indigenous to South America the Stone Giant is a mighty, invulnerable being who can be killed only by a hummingbird. This tale spread resulting in a wide variety of tales of this sort being told all over North America by the native cultures. If you'd like to learn more about hummingbirds in American lore, visit this animal totem page. I think hummingbirds are fascinating: there are so many different species, their wings are powerful, unique machines and they're beautiful and entertaining to watch. Be careful you're not wearing red or pink outside though, they've been known to zoom after people in search of nectar!