Battling Hummingbirds
 

We live in the forest so when my wife bought a hummingbird feeder I didn't think she had much of a chance of actually seeing any hummingbirds. Lo and behold, I was once again wrong and we got so many hummingbirds that we now have 4 feeders.

Our challenge now is that all they do is battle for control of the feeders. As soon as one hummingbird lands one or two others will swoop in to push em off. Its constant. I think there are at least half a dozen flying around out there and all they do is make sure no one else gets to the feeders.

Sometimes in late dusk we will see one successfully land and feed.

Anyone got any insights into hummingbird behavior?

My jealous heart...
 

I love seeing them....we don’t have a feeder, but they are attracted to the 14 window boxes surrounding the deck. We usually have to settle for one at a time....lovely little creatures.

Mine, Mine, Mine!!!
 

Hummingbirds are very territorial. We watch them do the same things described by the OP. 🐻

Something new to me. I had a humming bird inthe flowers which had an apparent yellow tinge to its breast. After hovering it flew away at break neck speed. Some say it was a canary but do they hover and do they fly that fast.
After this inciden the following day as working on the side of the house , I heard birds chatter in the trees. They were chasing each other up and down the branches before flying away. They were yellow. But didn't fly like an American Gold Finch, which we have plenty of. Question is, what bird did I see.

__________________________________

I am a retired workaholic and continuing aquaholic

I have the same experience with one feeder. Two males chase each other off and on all day, although usually each gets to feed. On rare occasions, they will feed at the same time.

We get the dueling hummers here too...amazing how they can dart and weave with such precision! We even have a stubborn Yellowjacket type, smallish hornet that has been vying for the feeder as well. The feisty bug actually succeeds in driving the hummers away...I fixed that with a quick flick of my flicking finger!
Another denizen of the woods has been making occasional appearances on the property...a goshawk! They fly low and fast too! Love the variety of nature the region gives us!

Cornell Bird Cams
 

They have several sites, many of which follow the nesting and raising of young, along with info on the habits of some species.
Most of the sites have specie histories, identification information and more about lifestyles and habits.

I've followed about 5-6 years of Red-Tailed Hawks rearing new chicks on the Cornell campus site. From time-to-time they follow condor chicks from hatch to mature (takes about 9 months compared to the hawks 5-7 week fledging time).

Anyway- lots of hummingbird viewing!