Isla Carmen
I love Arroyo Rojo on Isla Carmen, and this morning my love for this magic place was reinforced once again. On the way back from weaving our way through the twisted canyon and climbing up and down dry waterfalls from one red-walled level to another, we came upon a female Costa’s hummingbird darting about catching insects like a flycatcher (that’s a type of bird for those of you aren’t birders!). Hoping that she was catching insects to supplement the diet of chicks, we watched carefully and finally saw her visit her nest and quickly feed her young. The nest didn’t seem much bigger than a thimble (actually it was about 1 ½ inches in diameter) with two tiny chicks sticking their minute beaks up to mama. However, as soon as she left they became as still as statues.
Hummingbirds are amazing! They can do somersaults; fly backwards and forwards and sideways and straight up and straight down. This takes a lot of wing power so these tiny birds’ flight muscles make up 30% of their body weight and the heart that supplies oxygen to these massive muscles is the largest in relation to body size of any animal in the world. They primarily feed on nectar, which fuels their rapid metabolism with high-energy sugars. To meet this need they must feed about 60 times per day and visit as many as 2000 flowers. They must also supplement this diet with insects, which supply proteins. Hummers cannot keep up this high metabolic level for long periods of time so they actually spend about 70% of their time perched on branches and often enter torpor at night where their metabolism slows dramatically, their breathing slows dramatically and their heart rate decreases from up to 1260 beats per minute to 50 to 80 beats per minute. The largest hummer in the U.S. is the blue-throated hummingbird, which is about 5 1/2 inches and weighs about as much as two nickels and the smallest is the Calliope which is about 3 inches long and weighs less than a penny. In spite of their fast-lane life, these remarkable little animals may live for 8 to 12 years.
After watching a humpback juvenile feeding south of Isla Carmen, we spent the rest of the day on another of my favorite islands, Isla Catalina. Here we enjoyed a great snorkel, kayaking, swimming, diving and a gorgeous hike late in the afternoon. While still at anchor after dinner, we were treated to live undersea viewing 70 feet below us using the ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle) Tony and Joan brought aboard to share with us.
And thus ended another incredible day in the Sea of Cortez.
I love Arroyo Rojo on Isla Carmen, and this morning my love for this magic place was reinforced once again. On the way back from weaving our way through the twisted canyon and climbing up and down dry waterfalls from one red-walled level to another, we came upon a female Costa’s hummingbird darting about catching insects like a flycatcher (that’s a type of bird for those of you aren’t birders!). Hoping that she was catching insects to supplement the diet of chicks, we watched carefully and finally saw her visit her nest and quickly feed her young. The nest didn’t seem much bigger than a thimble (actually it was about 1 ½ inches in diameter) with two tiny chicks sticking their minute beaks up to mama. However, as soon as she left they became as still as statues.
Hummingbirds are amazing! They can do somersaults; fly backwards and forwards and sideways and straight up and straight down. This takes a lot of wing power so these tiny birds’ flight muscles make up 30% of their body weight and the heart that supplies oxygen to these massive muscles is the largest in relation to body size of any animal in the world. They primarily feed on nectar, which fuels their rapid metabolism with high-energy sugars. To meet this need they must feed about 60 times per day and visit as many as 2000 flowers. They must also supplement this diet with insects, which supply proteins. Hummers cannot keep up this high metabolic level for long periods of time so they actually spend about 70% of their time perched on branches and often enter torpor at night where their metabolism slows dramatically, their breathing slows dramatically and their heart rate decreases from up to 1260 beats per minute to 50 to 80 beats per minute. The largest hummer in the U.S. is the blue-throated hummingbird, which is about 5 1/2 inches and weighs about as much as two nickels and the smallest is the Calliope which is about 3 inches long and weighs less than a penny. In spite of their fast-lane life, these remarkable little animals may live for 8 to 12 years.
After watching a humpback juvenile feeding south of Isla Carmen, we spent the rest of the day on another of my favorite islands, Isla Catalina. Here we enjoyed a great snorkel, kayaking, swimming, diving and a gorgeous hike late in the afternoon. While still at anchor after dinner, we were treated to live undersea viewing 70 feet below us using the ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle) Tony and Joan brought aboard to share with us.
And thus ended another incredible day in the Sea of Cortez.
