126 
THE CONDOR 
Vor.. XII 
danger. Finally, having examined him from all sides and becoming fully satisfied 
that he was quite dead, she whirled up into the air and dasht away in search of 
new worlds to conquer. 
The food supply, as is of course the case with all hummers, consists for the 
most part of tiny insects secured from the flowers. Anna, however, delights to 
rob the webs of the larger spiders of their prey, and has also developt the art of 
fly-catching in mid-air to an extent that I have seen in no others of the family. 
Often, while percht on a telegraph wire or the top of a small tree, she will dart up 
into the air and capture some minute wayfarer, returning to her perch and gulp- 
ing it down with the greatest apparent satisfaction. 
Soft insects are the rule in hummingbird diet, but this species appears to be 
fond of a tiny metallic-green beetle of decidedly hard-shelled characteristics. The 
well known hummingbird mannet of buzzing up to a flower and dipping in the 
beak while on the wing is a fixt rule with all the adults; but when first learning to 
secure food for themselves the young birds find this rather too much for them. 
They will buzz in front of a flower for a few seconds, but their strength soon gives 
out and they are obliged to settle in, or on, the flower and pick out their food in a 
most ludicrous and unhummingbird-like manner. 
In its habits this species has one characteristic in which it is very nearly 
unique among the wild birds of the United States. This is in the truly remarkable 
length of the nesting season; for it seems extremely probable that nests may be 
found in almost every month of the year. The earliest, or possibly it should be 
called the latest, evidence of nesting that I have personally noted was on January 
3 of the present year, when I saw a well-grown young bird percht in a cypress tree 
and garded bv its mother. A few yards away in the same tree was the empty nest; 
the egg from which this young one was hatcht could not possibly have been laid 
more recently than the third week in November. 
I was unable to get into the field until December, but in the first week of that 
month several male hummers were most assiduously courting their mates, which 
has been an every day occurrence up to the middle of June when this article is 
being written. The manner of their courtship is thoroly in keeping with the vig- 
orous nature of the birds. The female usually sits in the midst of some low bush 
or tree, motionless, with beak pointing downward, apparently paying not the 
smallest attention to the frantic efforts of the gorgeous male to attract her. With 
his flashing gorget and crown-plate extended to its greatest compass he mounts into 
the air some fifty or sixty feet above her and, diving headlong downward, passes in 
a great arc a few inches under her and ascends to his former altitude. This he re- 
peats as fast as possible, one that I saw making twenty-two consecutive dives. 
At each dip he gives his love song which consists of a rather harsh “chu-chu- 
chu”, which is repeated rather slowly and is surprizingly loud for so small a bird. 
The patience of the same male above-mentioned seemed to suddenly give out, for 
he paused at last beneath his unresponsive ladylove, then glided slowly up to her 
and catching her beak with his own pulled her headlong from her perch. The 
lady did not appear to resent this in the least, for the two birds at once flew away 
together, the male taking the lead. 
My first occupied nest was found on December 29, my attention being attracted 
by the female flying to it with a small feather in her bill. This nest was situated 
twelve feet up in a cypress tree upon two cones that were attacht to a dead twig. 
During the next two days there was an almost continual downpour of rain so that 
the nest became thoroly soakt thru; nevertheless the bird was at work again on the 
first of the year, as soon as the sun put in its appearance. The first egg was laid 
