One Last Rufous Hummingbird

July brought the first rufous hummingbirds to my Prescott cabin.  Usually they arrive amidst the commotions of the first monsoon storms, right at the beginning of July.  However the early rains of June seemed to confuse the birds' arrivals, postponing them until later in the month.  Nevertheless, robust males eventually pushed the dominant Anna's hummingbirds out of my yard and away from my sugar water feeders for part of the summer.

By August, juveniles and females started arriving and the males began leaving the area, continuing their migrations south.  These late arrivals kept on mostly winning the battles against the Anna's - but not against any lingering rufous males - for total domination of the feeders.  

As September welcomed autumn this week, the late arrivals mostly decamped.  A few cold weather-tolerant stragglers still remained, stealing a sip from the sugar water or a wildflower.  The next time I visit Prescott in early October, the feeders will be empty for the first time and the flowers mostly withered and dried.  Until next year, I'll only have photographs of the rufous hummingbirds to remember the long-distance travelers by.

One last rufous hummingbird, a juvenile or female, in Prescott last weekend.

Male rufous hummingbird in early August.

Male rufous hummingbird in early August.