We don't get hummingbirds in Australia, so we were all the more delighted when Joe Martin sent us his and his wife Nancy's story about their hummingbird friend Buddy. After the hurricanes Francis and Jean in 2004, they packed up in Florida and moved to East Tennessee:

What a change from flat land of Florida and humidity to rolling hills, tall mountains and changes of the seasons of East Tennessee. Being bird lovers we set up feeding stations for the wild birds in our new home. A humming bird feeder was also erected. Within a few weeks we had our first humming birds.

As spring progressed we had more and more hummers. Soon three more feeders were added to the other corners of the porches. After many days of fighting over the feeders things seemed to settle down with males guarding their chosen feeders, only allowing their mates to feed. Things were going well when one cool morning we woke up to see a small fluffed up little hummingbird on the porch railing. It was so small and fragile. We watched to see if it would move for about a half an hour, but it just sat there still as can be. I could stand it no longer and went outside to see if it was hurt. It still did not move, so I went closer and picked it up. It was so cold it could not move.

I cupped  it in my hand and warmed it up until I felt it moving around . As I slowly opened up my hands it looked up at me with a twist of its little head and fluffed its wings and tucked its head back on its chest. Trying to think of what to do next with this precious little thing. Knowing that hummingbirds are attracted to red I got the cap off a red marker pen I rinsed it out with hot soapy water and filled it with hummingbird nectar and put it up to its beak. Nothing! So I tipped its beak into the nectar and it licked its beak. A few more dips of the beak and it was lapping it up with gusto. What a thrill to see it open its eyes and start looking around. It did not try to fly from my hands. About this time I hear a strange noise from behind me, turning around I see a male hummingbird diving at me and I guess scolding me for touching his baby.

I set it down on an old bird feeder in clear sight of its father. Hearing its father it opened its beak seeming to say feed me daddy! The male hummingbird was soon joined by its mother. As I sat back and watched its parents feed it what a thrill we got. It let me get up to him and supplement its parents feeding with the nectar from the red marker cap. It stayed on the back porch for many weeks getting stronger and stronger each day.

He, we found later that year when he molted its feathers, would fly to our hands and feed from the pen cap and later to a clear plastic medicine cap all summer. With his parents taking turns with us in feeding my little buddy . We gave him the name of "Buddy".  Buddy grew up to be a handsome young man. At this writing he has returned the past two years. This last summer he has blessed us with two of his own babies. Hoping to write another article on that great adventure in the future. Hope you enjoyed this as much as we did.

Cheers!
Gitie and Ron.