Filming wild hummingbirds

 

A male White-vented Plumeleteer hummingbird (Chalybura buffonii) feeding in a modified glass feeder.

We have successfully trained wild hummingbirds to voluntarily feed in front of high speed cameras with macro lenses, allowing us to see how the bill and tongue function in exceptional detail. Now we can easily enter their world!

Check out some of the different feeders and species!

We can alter the artificial feeders to allow us to collect data on different aspects of hummingbird feeding. For this project, we will train the birds to feed in graduated feeders, so that we can document how much nectar they extract with each lick.