We heard a hummingbird zipping through the gym the other day, and when we stopped to look we realized it was trapped inside and confused. I hung a feeder and it quickly stopped to drink and drink. Apparently, a trapped hummingbird can starve to death within an hour!
It must have flown in through the open French doors, but it kept flying up high looking for an escape at the roofline, zipping nervously the whole length of the building back and forth. I figured that since it had a feeder now, it was best to just leave it alone. Besides, there was no way to catch it. We left the doors open overnight figuring it would eventually find the very obvious way out.
But no. It was still fruitlessly searching for an escape the next morning. I hung a second feeder right in the doorway and turned on all the lights. He flew to each chandelier and perched.
By this time I'd done a little research. I had assumed that this was a juvenile hummingbird, maybe a recent fledgling, not yet savvy to the human world. Again, no. It's an adult male Rufous Hummingbird, just clearly not a terribly clever one.
Eventually, he worked his way over toward the door, and casually sipped his way around the feeder. I saw the moment he realized he was outside, 'Oh', and he flitted off into the lilac bush, probably exhausted from his ordeal.
I closed up the gymnasium that afternoon, lest he find himself trapped again, and found this tiny remembrance...a feather.
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