Hummingbirds Duel at Lightning-Fast Speed, Jousting in the Air—Here Are the Photos

Hummingbirds skirmish over access to a bird feeder on Craig Emmerich's acreage near Minneapolis in late August. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

The airspace within photographer Craig Emmerich’s back 40 acres has turned into something of a battle zone this summer, as migrating hummingbirds have been spectacularly dueling over access to his bird feeders.

Acting quickly, the homeowner, who lives in western Wisconsin just outside Minneapolis, managed to capture on camera some of their lightning-fast parries and counter-ripostes.

“They are so competitive,“ Emmerich, 53, told The Epoch Times. ”I was wondering why are they twisting and flying around and fighting? And I just really wanted to go to try to catch some of that on photos, but it’s not easy.”

Despite their feisty nature, hummingbirds are delicate little creatures, he added.

They weigh less than a penny, but their little wings beat ridiculously fast, up to 80 times per second, burning loads of energy. So to make their yearly migration they have to eat their whole body weight in nectar or sugar water every couple days.

A hummingbird feeding on flower nectar in mid-flight. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

That explains why they’re so territorial. These highly-energetic and thirsty birds are protective about readily available food sources.

Last month, Emmerich managed to capture a sequence of shots displaying acts of aerial jousting worthy of an Olympic fencer—only much faster. Ten photos he snapped in one instance spanned a mere three-tenths of a second.

He saw one bird dart towards another, then he immediately clicked the shutter and could only hope. Remarkably, the photos revealed an intricate jiu-jitsu-style sequence compressed into the time it takes to blink an eye.

“With our unaided eye, you can’t really tell what they’re doing because it’s so fast,” Emmerich said.

“You can see she’s holding the beak of the other one,” he explained. “The one female has the other by the beak, swings it in a full circle in less than .3 seconds. That’s how fast they are!”

Two female hummingbirds skirmish over access to a bird feeder on Craig Emmerich's acreage near Minneapolis in late August. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

A female hummingbird grips another bird's beak with her foot during a duel. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

The female hummingbird grips the other bird's beak with her foot and begins to whirl her opponent in a circle in mid-flight. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Emmerich managed to capture the judo-like circular motion, which happened in three-tenths of a second. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

Emmerich’s Sony A1 version 2 camera can shoot 30 frames a second, he says. He used a 300-millimeter lens to capture incredible detail.

Emmerich, who fell in love with photography and the whole process of developing film from a young age, says nature inspires him to capture landscapes and animals—everything from whales to cheetahs, lions, and, of course, hummingbirds. He goes on whale watching tours near his winter home in Hawaii and safaris during trips to Africa.

But his fascination with the fragile and mildly ferocious hummingbird led him to set up two feeders in his yard in Wisconsin. As their competitive behaviour became more noticeable, he decided to zoom in on the action.

Waiting hours by the feeder during evenings last month paid off, and he caught the birds’ skirmish with his camera. But the action hasn’t stopped since then. Soon, another aerial battle ensued, which he photographed.

After a brawl broke out by the feeder, a female hummingbird took her competitor to the deck where she was photographed stepping on the other bird's beak. Courtesy of Craig Emmerich

“They were fighting like crazy, flying all over the place for several minutes,” he said, adding that the bout went to the ground like mixed martial arts. “The one female is holding the other female down on the deck by the beak.”

He says both photo shoots “exceeded my expectations,” so he posted them for the hummingbird community he belongs to on Facebook, and it went viral.

“Three days later, it’s still constantly getting comments,” Emmerich said. “I never expected to see that clear photos of it.”