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ST. LOUIS, Mo. – It’s time to break out the hummingbird feeders. The temperatures may still be a little chilly but some of them have been spotted in the St. Louis area. The birds are making their annual migration north. Some of them have been spotted in the St. Louis area.
Hummingbirds spend winters in Central America or Mexico. Their annual migration north begins as early as February.
Some hummingbirds migrate great distances. The Rufous Hummingbird flies 3000 miles from Alaska to Mexico twice a year.
The birds can fly over 20 miles per day. They can lose nearly half of their body weight during the trip. They are always looking for sources of nectar to help them maintain the energy needed to fly thousands of miles.
Map to track hummingbird migration:
The birds will eventually make it to the east coast, upper portions of the Midwest, and to southern Canada before settling in for the summer. The migration should wrap up by late May. They will start heading back to Mexico in August.
Some hummingbirds in the United States do not migrate. They are found along the Pacific coast and southern portions of the nation.
