My father suffered a fatal heart attack on my parents 50th anniversary, leaving my unprepared mother stunned and alone. One thing that brought her daily solace in the years to come was a tiny hummingbird who came to visit the red and pink fuchsias outside her kitchen window each morning. As time went by, she insisted that this same bird, she named him Elmer, was a friend who returned to her garden each year to bring her good cheer. My sisters and I humored her, suspecting that it probably wasn’t the same little bird every year. Little did we know.
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In late summer 2025, I learned about a Hummingbird Migration Celebration being held at the Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary in Connersville, Indiana, only about 2 ½ hours
away. I love birds, and this sounded interesting, so I went. I knew these tiny workhorses were mighty pollinators, particularly enjoying my black & blue salvia and pineapple sage, and that they migrated to warmer places in the winter, but not much else. By the time this amazing day concluded, my head was buzzing with hummingbirds.

Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary consists of 700 acres of protected land owned and operated by the Indiana Audubon Socie￾ty. Here they conduct research and offer a plethora of programs and activities to the public. The park is open dawn to dusk, seven days a week, at no charge to guests; they run entirely on donations. There are miles of hiking trails through forests and prairie. You can hear birds everywhere, and spot some with a keen eye and binoculars, as you stroll among nature’s beauty.

My husband and I left the house early, arriving at open￾ing 9:00 am. We parked in a clearing and a shuttle drove us to the entrance. So much to do! There were guided nature hikes of different kinds (Butterfly & Nature Sleuthing, Wetland Wander, Family Herping, to name a few) every half hour. There were talks on hummingbirds, native plants, and conservation. A Birds of Prey show was presented by the DNR. There was food trucks, live music, and plenty of activities for kids. But the main event was the Hummingbird Banding Demonstrations.

A panel of four sat at a long table. One person brought a tiny bird to the table in a light web-like netting, the second put the bird in a mesh sleeve for its protection, the third recorded the data, and the last, a certified handler, noted its sex, size, weight, color, and other information, and banded the bird with its unique number. Can you imagine putting this teensy tiny custom- made band on a hummingbird leg? Amazing!

Hummingbirds instinctively follow flyways, highways in the sky, spring and fall to complete their migration cycle. That’s when we are visited the most. Indiana’s ruby throated hummingbirds migrate to central America, flying across the Gulf of Mexico in one non-stop flight. They fly by day when nectar sources are more abundant. Their average speed in direct flight is 20-30 mph. They are experts at using tail winds. Research indicates a hummingbird can
travel as much as 23 miles in one day. However, during migration as they cross the Gulf they may cover up to an astounding 500 miles at a time.

During migration, a hummingbird’s heart beats up to 1,260 times a minute, and its wings flap 15 to 80 times a second. To support this high energy level, a hummingbird may eat every 15 minutes, typically gaining 25-40% of its body weight before starting migration, in order to make the long trek over land and water.

We always teased mom a little bit about “Elmer” being the same bird every year. But come to find out hummingbirds too often return to their same nesting site year after year. One female bird at Mary Gray was traced for 9 consecutive years.

I highly recommend events at the Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary. We had a wonderful day. And keep on planting those herbs that will fortify these wee birds on their long journey.

By: Deb Slentz, Member