Experiments in Feeding Hummingbirds 159 



after the drinking birds have left there is occasionally a mi- 

 grant among the natural flowers. The bottles are full of syrup 

 but it passes them unheedfully. 



Habits seem to change when steady drinking is practiced, 

 but in the case of the birds the habit does not appear to be 

 a harmful one. At once she ceases to search the flowers 

 and, like the typical summer boarder, she sits and waits for 

 the food to be served. Each bird appears to have her favor- 

 ite perch, a dead twig of syringa or lilac bushes on the north, 

 or on the south in one of the snow-ball bushes ; the telephone 

 wires on either side of the street offer acceptable waiting- 

 places at times. Not infrequently I have been intent upon 

 other duties about the yard and looking up have found a 

 Ruby-throat perched directly over-head, her bright eyes 

 seeming to say "I want to be fed." So< complete appears 

 the cessation of the search for other food that it led to the 

 keeping of a full record for the past three years of every 

 time one of these birds has been seen catching insects or 

 searching the natural flowers for food. Most of these in- 

 stances noted were, if the whole truth could be learned, prob- 

 ably, cases of strangers just arrived within our gates, that 

 had not yet acquired the drinking habit. 



In 1911 the drinking birds were about our place on forty- 

 three days. During that time on only four occasions was a 

 Hummingbird seen catching insects or probing the flowers. 

 A larg-e number of plants called "Star of Bethlehem" had 

 been raised, these flowers in previous summers having proved 

 a great attraction to the Ruby-throat in the yard of a friend 

 living two miles distant; but our drinking birds were never 

 seen to visit these flowers. After their departure strange 

 Hummingbirds searched them thoroughly as well as the 

 phlox, tiger-lilies, sweet peas, nasturtiums and clover. These 

 strangers were present on twelve days. In 1913 the drink- 

 ers were with us on seventy-seven days, and were seen but 

 ten times seeking other food than syrup. In 1913 for forty- 

 nine days the drinking birds imbibed, and on nine occasions 

 a Hummingbird was seen sratherinsr food elsewhere. In the 



