![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/black-chinned-hummingbird-1762-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"black-chinned-hummingbird-1762\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\n1\/5000, f\/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n I photographed them on Antelope Island a few weeks ago as they were slurping nectar from wild Rocky Mountain Bee Plant. I like this photo for its clean background and the sharpness of both bird and flower.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n This shot is a little more cluttered and the flower is somewhat\u00a0soft but there’s something subtle going on here that tickles my fancy. This\u00a0bird is in full flight but it almost looks like it’s perched on the unopened flower because of the position of the\u00a0flower under the bird and the fact that the\u00a0hummer has\u00a0hooked one of its claws over the tip of one flower bud. I’m sure it was deliberate but I can only guess as to\u00a0why – perhaps it’s because\u00a0the flowers were swaying in a\u00a0slight breeze and\u00a0this was the bird’s way of stabilizing the flower and\/or itself in the breeze.<\/p>\n Whatever the reason I’m always highly impressed\u00a0by the delicate\u00a0movements and incredible control of hummingbirds in flight.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/5000, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n One of the birds that morning even perched for me on a close twig and\u00a0displayed a variety of interesting poses. This is a leisurely (for a hummingbird at least) wing and neck stretch. At f\/5.6 and this focal length\u00a0my depth of field was extremely shallow so the tail isn’t sharp but even so the bird sure looks like it’s enjoying the stretch – so\u00a0much that it closed its eyes just like I do when I stretch in a similar way.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/4000, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n I always enjoy catching hummers with their tongues out and the bird was considerate enough to give me a side view so both tongue and bill are sharp from tip to tip. That tongue is an amazingly efficient tool for harvesting nectar and we’ve recently learned more about how it works. It’s more complicated than I can go into here but if you’re interested check out this link<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/4000, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n Most folks think of a bird’s bill as being rigid and inflexible but that’s far from the case in many species. The hummer very briefly demonstrated rhynchokinesis – the ability of some birds to “bend” their bills. Usually (though not always) when this happens it’s so fast that I\u00a0don’t even notice it until I’m reviewing my images at home, as was the case here.<\/p>\n Most of our hummingbirds are gone now so I thought I’d post a few more images of them while they’re still (barely)\u00a0“in season”. It’s going to be a long winter without them.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n Late addendum: If you’re interested in seeing a hummingbird with a tongue that’s about 2.5 times longer than its bill (and an explanation for it)\u00a0check out this link from Wickersham’s Conscience<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n