The ruby-throated hummingbird in today"s homepage image is snacking on some yellow bells in the Texas Hill Country, preparing for its long journey south for the winter. This time of year, the hummingbirds leave the northern latitudes of the eastern US and Canada, migrating to the warmer climes of Mexico and Central America. Along their route, many will cross the Gulf of Mexico in a single 500-mile flight, which can take 18-22 hours of nonstop flying at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. Tiny but fierce, the ruby-throated hummingbird weighs less than a nickel. It beats its wings about 53 times a second on average, but during courtship the wingbeat rate increases to 200 times per second, the fastest of any bird.
Tiny fliers head south
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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Haghartsin Monastery, Armenia
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International Polar Bear Day
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Acadia transformed
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Celebrating all things Austen
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Walton Lighthouse, Santa Cruz, California
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It s harvest time on World Food Day
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Mod gear
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Saskatchewan s spookier side
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The most Instagrammable bird?
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A plot was afoot
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A Flag Day tradition
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Summertime in Alaska
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The Big Blue of the Sierra
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Have fun storming the castle
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Happy Father s Day
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Summer’s in home stretch
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Humming along
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Valentines Day
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Kings of the Kalahari
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Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland
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International Whale Shark Day
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Buddha in the roots of a tree, Ayutthaya, Thailand
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Next stop, Tofino
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Stompin’ with the Big Chief
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A bite of ancient history
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It s a ruff life
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Martin Luther King Jr. Day
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Green sea turtle on World Oceans Day
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It’s Penguin Awareness Day
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Sharp-dressed bug