Drone Disguised as Hummingbird Captures Incredible Footage of Monarch Butterfly Swarm

[BobH]

I totally thought this was a joke / Photoshop, but it's not!
1) That's really cool. 2) I wanna go there. 3) Where do I get a hummingbird camera drone? I can finally get good hummingbird photos.

Drone Disguised as Hummingbird Captures Incredible Footage of Monarch Butterfly Swarm

It's not very often that I watch a video online and react by literally gasping and audibly saying "wow." Watching Captain America stare down Thanos and his whole army, in an IMAX cinema, on a huge screen, was the last time I reacted in such a way. This time, even without the huge screen...

fstoppers.com

 

[Bill Anderson]

Hummingbirds are very territorial. You will get some good shots of your hummer drone being attacked.

I found a tree full of migrating monarchs when I lived in Monterey. It was at a state park in Big Sur and I assumed everyone knew about it. I later read in the paper how biologists were thrilled at discovering this "new" location.

 

[BobH]

I have a (crappy) video from my doorbell cam showing one buzzing my head as I’m standing by the feeder I’d just filled. As a friend says, if hummingbirds were any bigger, they’d be scary as hell!

 

[Bill Anderson]

There are a few days in the winter when my hummer feeders will freeze if I leave them out for the night, so I bring them inside. The next morning the resident hummer nearly mugs me when I open the sliding door to hang the feeders back up. He is in my face and perches on a feeder as soon as I hang it up without waiting for me to back away.

 

[BobH]

Yep, I've had that happen too. They'll fly right up to my face and angrily buzz at me. Now, I don't speak hummingbird, but I know for certain they're saying "Where in the hell do you think you're going with that?!?"

Deb solved the problem this year though. She bought me a heated feeder. It's a stock feeder with a custom bottom that holds an old school large Christmas tree bulb. You plug it in when it's going to be below freezing. The heat from the bulb works fine, at least in Seattle. Not sure if it would handle Montana winters, but when it's in the 20's, not a problem.

The bulb is low wattage, so it's not a big problem to leave it on long term.