I wanted to emphasize first that there is a lot of conflicting information out there, most of it not confirmed scientifically. I found the idea of the male defending the female on a number of sites as well as a number of sites stating the contrary. My understanding, and belief, is that they don't even help out by defending the females territory. They defend their own territory and seek out other females. Perhaps his aggressiveness indirectly benefits the nearby female on the nest. I also have to believe that if he wintered in Lakeland, he will migrate out by May. I see banded and color-marked birds in my yard through May but then don't see another hummer until June or July. I'm not in an area where they breed. They breed regularly along the Hillsborough River near USF and in the Green Swamp (that I'm aware of) but this far south, they aren't typically found breeding in the cities or away from water (that I'm aware of). Also, if the bird had disappeared for a spell, it may be a new bird migrating through. Better yet, he could be a new bird arriving at his summer destination if she typically sees summering hummingbirds. I don't want to sound like I'm arguing a point. There is a lot we don't know. One of the hopes of banding studies is to find answers to these questions. From my point of view, it is best to realize that the bird may be gone and be happy if you see it again than to be disappointed when you realize he didn't come back. Understand that he's doing what he's supposed to and didn't necessarily wind up some hawk's lunch. Embrace that there's another month of migration and you never know what you'll find. I believe the answer to the original question of 'should I take my feeders down?' is, no. There's still another month of migration. Also, if possible, try to maintain a feeder through the summer. Just in case. Sometimes, there is dispersal of the first brood by early June. The fact that you're not far from the Green Swamp indicates that you could get one of these young birds much earlier than would be typically expected.

Gldno, great photo; what kind of camera are you using? Count me in as another birdwatcher/birdfeeder, though like Mimi, I don't set the table year round. At Thanksgiving I start putting out black oil sunflower seeds in several tube feeders and will also hang suet or tallow if it's really cold. I take them up by St Patrick's. We have many mature trees and several shrubs around the house as well as a number of boxes and birdhouses and I've noticed that fighting over the feeders interferes with nest building. So, I'm happy to help out in the winter, but once it's spring, they're on their own. I only feed BOSS; the Finches like it as well as the considerably more expensive Thistle, and I figure if the birds are just hankering for corn, they can (and do) flit down among the chickens for a little scratch. Our Grandson usually makes a couple of peanut butter pine cone bird feeders each year for Christmas too. Have you done Cornell's Great Backyard Bird Count? It's a four day, nationwide event that consists of individuals simply looking out their window and counting how many birds (and what species) are hanging around. You don't have to count from your home; anywhere you see birds is good. You can spend as little as 15 minutes on one afternoon, or several hours each day if you have the time. You fill in a different report for each day which is why there are two reports for Bowlegs, although I was the only person participating. I'd like to change that this year, and get the local school science class or at least the 4H group involved. We live on a farm with a good pond, surrounded by open fields and woods that sits at least a half mile from the nearest house, so we have a nice diversity of native birds all winter, everything from Roadrunner and Turkey Vultures to Juncos and Goldfinch. When you add in all the domestic chickens underfoot, it's pretty lively out there. :^) Here is a link that might be useful: Great Backyard Bird Count FAQ

Thank you so much for your help. I always get help right here at the KT! You are all right about the Painted Bunting. He was back today and brought a friend. I tried to get pictures but when I move toward the window, they fly away. I haven't found the other two yet but I am sure I will. We went for a ride today after Church and went on our Nature Trail, we saw a lot of ducks, herons,cranes, and a pink flamingo. Also, we saw a really large alligator.Jim said that he must have been at least 11 feet long. We saw another smaller one. The only thing about that trail, is I have never seen a squirrel or rabbit out there.

I wish just once I could experience that dieter's "high". Seriously. I just recently came off a 3.5 year quest for weight loss and extreme fitness. During this time, I trained for and completed a 5-day bicycle trip averaging 100 miles per day, a half-marathon (I don't like running so not doing a marathon), and a summit attempt on Mt. Rainier. OK, didn't summit, long story, but made it a good way up. All of these activities required a LOT of exercise including both strength (heavy free weights), aerobic fitness, a strong core, etc. A typical week included a minimum of 15 hours of exercising to a maximum of about 30 hours, depending on how long my hikes/bikes were. I also had 70# to lose. Less weight is certainly easier to carry both on a bike and up steep mountains. Especially when you're also hauling gear. I did Weight Watchers and, after 4 months of diligence, including weighing everything and inputting it into MyFitnessPal so I was tracking calories, nutrients and points, and lost a total of 4#. I then tried a series of other plans averaging about 3 months on each plan to give it a fair go prior to switching it up. These plans including the Fuhrman Eat to Live, The Leptin, 5:2, Durkan, just plain eating low-fat vegetarian/sometimes vegan meals, green smoothie fasts, low carb. You name it, I think I tried it. I felt great and could have probably done an Iron Woman competition at the fitness level I had attained. Oh, I would have been in last place but I think I could have completed one. And my attention to my diet's nutritional components also made me feel great. At the end of these 3.5 years of extreme effort and meticulousness, I lost a grand total of 15#. Before you say that I built a lot of muscle which weighs more so I must have lost a lot of inches. Well, I went down a pant size. So, no, not a big inch loss. I took a break and am having a hard time getting back on track. I miss being as fit as I was and I feel myself getting weaker and losing endurance and that bugs me a lot but that much exercise just isn't sustainable for me right now. I have too many other obligations that I was neglecting in order to work out that much. And since I worked that hard and didn't achieve my weight loss goal, I just don't know what I can do to lose the weight I still need to lose. I really don't. And it's difficult to muster the commitment to try again when nothing worked before. And, yes, I have had medical tests run. While my thyroid is on the slow side of normal, it's still in normal ranges. Consequently, everybody seems to think I'm lying about what I'm eating. Heck, I went to weighing food with a digital scale because it's more accurate than measuring spoons/cups. I'm not fudging my intake. And I don't even understand how some people can eat so much. When I eat in restaurants, a fairly rare event, I typically take half of it home for another meal later because I'm stuffed just eating the first half. Even when I was gaining, it was thus. Frustrating. Those of you who have had success, great. But don't presume that what you did works for everybody.