Ruby Throated Hummingbird
It amazes me how a Ruby Throated Hummingbird's iridescent feathers shimmer in the sunlight. Or how with it's back to the sun has dark, almost black throat colors that turn to a ruby/orange glow when they turn their head and the sun strikes that region. This is due to the structural make up of the feathers themselves. Their feathers contain structures shaped like pancakes, called melanosomes. Melanosomes contain many tiny bubbles. These bubbles create a variety of colors with a shimmering effect.
Hummingbirds have a wonderful range of iridescent colors that truly catch the eye. There are over 300 species of hummingbirds that exhibit this iridescent characteristic in their feathers.
Thanks to "BirdInformer.com" for their iridescent explanation.
We have a number of flower boxes on our east facing deck. This deck is about 30ft from the forest edge, a forest with evergreens and deciduous trees, a hummingbird’s preferred environment. There is also one feeder on the deck which they seems to prefer over the various flowers on hand.
To photograph the hummingbirds I set up about 20 feet from the intended target zone, pre-focus the camera and then sit back and wait. It is usually ten to fifteen minutes before the first bird arrives. They seldom stay long and spend most of their time at the feeder.
We also have a few metal tiki touches on the deck railing. When I take the torch out of the stand, they will sometimes perch on the horizontal rail and just look around. This is when it is the easiest to witness the changing colors in their feathers.
Late in the afternoon the fledgling flew into the feeder. After drinking in the sugar water it looked skyward. Not sure what caught it’s attention but after a couple seconds it took off flying down toward the ground before heading back toward the forest.
The three images below are all shots of the same Ruby Throated Hummingbird shot within seconds of one another. They clearly show the magical way the feathers appear to change color in the sunlight.