Thursday, July 18, 2013

Riverside Dr Adjacent: Hummingbird Frenzy

Photo: Diane Edwardson, July 12, 2013.  Three of at least eight tiny hummingbirds were feasting on the giant 30' tall bloom on the American Century Plant.  (Click on photos to enlarge.) 

The tiny birds were chattering loudly & chasing each other off the prime nectar of the spectacular plant.  They also competed with dozens of bees attracted to the sweet flowers that only bloom once before the plant dies.
Photo: Diane Edwardson, July 12, 2013.  I'd never seen more hummingbirds in one location in the neighborhood.  The non-native but excellent defensive & drought tolerant agave must be irresistible to the speedy little birds. 

Worth noting: the area surrounding the agave is dense with native California Black Walnut Woodland, a protected native tree species in the Hillside Areas of the City of Los Angeles.