Anna’s Hummingbird Nest

As I was walking around my backyard I found this little hummingbird nest on the ground. It must have been dislodged from a tree branch by the wind or by a predator. We have had several crows visit our yard this spring and crows are scavengers. They attack smaller birds in nests and eat their eggs. There were no eggs or egg shells on the ground with the nest.

The predominant hummingbird in our area is the Anna’s Hummingbird so I’m sure this is an Anna’s Hummingbird nest.

The first photo shows both a male and a female Anna’s Hummingbird. The female bird is the duller colored bird. The second photo is of a male Anna’s Hummingbird showing the brightly colored plumage.

The female hummingbird builds the nest out of plant down and spider webs, sitting in the nest and building the cup rim up around her. Nests take around a week to build and are 1 inch tall by 1.5 inches in diameter. They may be built of cattail, willow, leaves, thistle, or small feathers and bound together by spider webs or insect cocoons. They may decorate the outside with lichens, mosses, or even paint chips.

Hummingbirds have tiny legs and can neither hop nor walk, though they can sort of scoot sideways while perched.

The following are photos of the little nest I found on a white paper towel and a green piece of paper. The inside diameter of this nest is about the size of a quarter. You can see a feather sticking out of the edge of the nest and the lichen on the outside of the nest.