Thanks to additional photos yesterday of the hummingbird's rump and tail feathers, Don Mitchell (master hummingbird bander who did a lot of work with Selasphorus in California) is convinced the bird is an adult female. Photos and Don's valuable comments are at the hummingbird page <http://www.lauraerickson.com/Birds/NovemberHummingbird.html>
I also added 18 seconds of video footage (actually 9 seconds, only it's at half speed). My family is going to Florida on Tuesday, and will be gone until the following Wednesday. While we're gone, my mother-in-law will be here keeping the feeders going. It's a lot of work to bring them in at night and set them out in the morning, especially in dim light--she's 85--so if anyone is around to help some days, especially when it's slippery out there, I'd sure appreciate it. She will call me with updates, so tell her if there are any new developments in the identifying process, and though I won't be able to update the website while I'm gone, I will be able to call if there is a volunteer on both lists who can bring people up to date on new information. Denny Martin shot two rolls of film on her, and when those are developed, I will scan and add to the body of photos. Laura Erickson Duluth, MN Producer, "For the Birds" radio program <http://www.lauraerickson.com/> There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of birds. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature--the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter. --Rachel Carson
