Hummingbirds’ nests are amazing in the sense that they are created with absolute love and dedication and are meant to protect one of the tiniest birds on the planet. As tiny as the birds are, the nests they make are just as tiny. And it’s honestly an amazing sight to see, just watching hummingbirds in their natural habitat in the nest. Yet, most people don’t know what hummingbirds nest even looks like or where do hummingbirds nest, so one gets an opportunity to see the nest in the first place.
The thing about hummingbirds nest is that, for the untrained eyes, they are the easiest thing to miss. You could be looking at a nest and you won’t even have an idea it’s a nest in the first place, let alone it’s a hummingbird’s nest.
If you just look at a nest nestled in a tree, they barely look like another extended branch from the tree. If you are trying to see from above, they are concealed by leaves. If you look at those nests from the side, they appear to be a mini knot. On top of that, the nests can be slightly different depending on the species of the hummingbird along with the habitat. Though, in general, most hummingbird nests have many commonalities.
The Construction Of The Nest
Only the female hummingbirds participate in building the nests. For the male, once they are done mating, they have no say in where the nest would be or have any participation in collecting material for the nest. Yet, for the female species, they spend most of their time finding material for the nest for about an entire week, taking several hours a day.
In a hummingbird nest, cotton fibers, hair or fuzz, feathers, spider silk, some moss, some lichen are used. Some leaves and barks- really small parts- are woven in as well.
All these material are interspersed with each other to make a thick cup. The moss and lichen are used to decorate it,making it easier to hide the nest from plain sight. At the very edge, the cup is a bit curved. This way, if a gush of wind hits the nest, eggs won’t tip over. The spider silk acts as the glue that binds the nest together. It also allows for most elasticity of the nest so it can be made bigger later when the babies start growing up.
The dimension of a hummingbird nest can vary, owing to exactly what materials were used and the location the nest is originally made for. For the most part though, the nest of a hummingbird is 1.5 inches at most. Strictly speaking, it is about the size of a golf ball or of a really large piece of walnut. So, it is easy to see why most of us have little to no idea what hummingbird nests looks like or where do hummingbirds nests.
If you want to find one, you have to look at branches of a tree that are forked, along the thin branches of a plant or you might find one really hidden in bushes- completely hidden from the rest of the world. They especially love bushes with thorns in them, as they offer more protection.
Final Thoughts
Finding a hummingbird nest is no easy task. You better have your binoculars ready to zoom into places you wouldn’t be able to see properly with your eyes. You need to think of a really inconspicuous location around plants. As long as you are looking at non typical location and keep in mind how small those nests are and how they look, you should be able to see one. typical location and keep in mind how small those nests are and how they look, you should be able to see one.
