[Maine-birds] Very Interesting Hummingbird, Hill's Beach, Biddeford

Hi all,
I (Derek) have been spending a lovely morning with Pat Moynahan in her Hill's Beach kitchen pondering a hummingbird that has been visiting their feeder since approximately 10/17.

I am far from certain about this bird's identification, but i am fairly confident that this bird is a member of the genus Selasphorous. In fact, i believe this bird is either a Rufous or -dare I say this - SUGGESTIVE of a Broad-tailed Hummingbird. i have a lot of research to do, studying of photos, and calls/emails to make, but at the very least, this is a bird well worth looking at. i'll post photos later today, with a bit of analysis.

The bird has been frequenting the feeders since shortly after 7:00am this morning, and was coming regularly (about every 15 minutes) through about 9:00am. Unfortunately, it's visits have become less frequent in the past 45 minutes.

Although the identification of this bird is far from clear, I believe it is worth coming to see...at least to study a really intriguing little bird. Pat and Marian are welcoming visitors, but care must be taken in avoiding disturbing the bird...or the neighbors. The house is #133 Hill's Beach Road (on the north side of Biddeford Pool). There is room for a couple of cars to park immediately in front of the house, but I would recommend parking in the public parking spaces across the street from Bufflehead's Restaurant and walking the short distance to the house (on the left side of the road). There's a Squirrel Buster Plus feeder with a green baffle hanging from a tree in the front yard.

The hummingbird feeders are on the right (east) side of the house. I recommend viewing from the ROAD (a scope would be useful). Although folks are welcome to walk up the driveway, the bird seems very skittish and does not visit the feeder when people are nearby outside. If there is a light green Prius (license plate: PETRL) in the driveway and it's not an unreasonable hour, you can knock on the front door for information at least.

Good luck, and I will be in touch soon with more,
Derek (via Pat)



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