Article in: Birding
November 13, 2012
Snoring Hummingbird? Coming Out of Torpor and Oh So Cute!
Stacia sent me a link to this and it is just too adorable not to share.
This hummingbird was being measured for how much oxygen it uses and the video captured what sounds like hummingbird-sized snoring.
Watch the video (might have to refresh this page) and read the full writeup from It’s Okay to Be Smart
Interesting comment on this from hummingbird expert Sheri L. Williamson (from the site linked to above):
“I’ve handled thousands of hummingbirds, and this appears to me to be a bird awake enough to be aware of the researcher(s) but still too deep in torpor to defend itself, and the “snore” is a distress call. It’s an admittedly small sample, but the single hummingbird that I’ve observed while it was emerging from torpor didn’t make any sound at all (but it also didn’t have a bright light shining in its eyes).”
I’m guessing this sound would pique the interest of our dog, Bella.
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Melissa says:
I know hummingbirds make many sounds but I never thought snoring would be on the list! I hope the little dear came out of torpor all right and went about its business. Thanks for sharing!
Posted on: November 14, 2012 @ 3:04 pm
The Birdfreak Team says:
Melissa – You are most welcome. I assume he came out of torpor fine but what an odd sound!
Posted on: November 14, 2012 @ 4:07 pm
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