Cooling Off

Here’s how to help hummingbirds during extreme temperatures

- EMILY HANNEMANN

When it's hot outside, humans reach for cold drinks, retreat to our living rooms, and crank the air conditioning. Hummingbirds, on the other hand, can't duck indoors. So should you worry about your favorite flying jewels when temperatures rise? We talked with John Shewey, author of The Hummingbird Handbook, to learn about how hummingbirds adapt to hot weather and how you can help them.

Tolerating the Heat

These tiny birds are better adapted to hot weather than you'd think.
After all, most members of the hummingbird family live in the tropics. John says heat exhaustion for a hummer is possible in theory, but they'll seek out shelter from heat, just like humans do.

"Given shade and moisture, hummingbirds can tolerate plenty of heat," says John. "In fact, some species, such as the Costa's hummingbird of the Southwest, are well adapted to heat." John also mentions that hummingbirds have areas of low feather density around their legs, eyes and the bases of their wings. These anatomical features allow them to shed any excessive warmth during flight.

Ways to Help