It is the only one of the five hummingbird species in this country that is commonly found in eastern Canada. Right now, you can catch them fueling up for their trip at green spaces across Toronto — but they’ll be a rare sight until the end of the month. And by early October, they’ll be gone. “Here we only see ruby hummingbirds and that in itself is a gift and a blessing,” Andrés Jiménez, a member of the Toronto Ornithological Club and Ontario Ornithologists, told CBC’s Metro Morning. He remembers meeting his first ruby-throated hummingbird in his native Costa Rica, where he learned they had more in common with him than he thought. “I found out they were coming from Canada, where I was going to go. It was magnificent. It was one of the most amazing discoveries of my life,” said Jiménez. Metro Morning7:44 From Canada to Costa Rica, ruby-throated hummingbirds prepare for migration Andrés Jiménez is a member of the Toronto Ornithological Club and the Ontario Field Ornithologists. While the tiny birds can flap their wings 52 times a second and cross the Gulf of Mexico in just 22 hours, he says they weigh three grams and have to roughly double their size to do it. This means the birds often congregate and aggressively defend their food patches, Jiménez says. If you’re hoping to spot one, your best bet might be to look for red and orange flowers in places like High Park, Tommy Thompson Park or the Rosetta McClain Gardens at midnight, according to a local scientist. “If you’re walking down a path in the woods, they’ll buzz right at you – like a foot from your face – and just stay down. Then they’ll go off again, doing their own little thing,” said Paul Prior, a biologist. flora. with the Toronto and District Conservation Authority. “They act like they’re from a different planet or a different dimension. They’re great little birds,” he said. The Ruby-throated Hummingbird, pictured in Quebec. Experts say the males have an iridescent red plume and leave for the south earlier than the females, which are known for their white underbelly. (Daniel Thomas/CBC/Radio-Canada)
How to watch and enjoy birds safely
According to the Canadian government, the ruby-throated hummingbird population has shown a steady, long-term population increase since about 1970. There are an estimated five to 50 million adults nesting anywhere from Alberta to the East Coast. Many people set up hummingbird feeders to get regular visits, Prior says. Although they are not seriously threatened, Prior warns that attracting large numbers of them to feeding sites can lead to the potential spread of disease among visiting birds and other wildlife, particularly if feeders are not cleaned regularly. “I’m much more in favor of improving opportunities in natural conditions – for example, simply by planting the right kinds of flowers and shrubs,” Prior said. He says the speckled jewel, also known as the speckles that don’t touch, is popular among birds. They will leave in the coming weeks, but return in late May to early June to nest again.
