Little Ruf and the Stranger

Every day I hang around the kitchen window from about 6:45 to 7:45 both am and pm waiting for my little Rufous to show. This evening as I was preparing dinner I looked out on the perching branches above the feeder and there was a stranger there. A green-backed stranger. I grabbed the binoculars and got a bead on him...green back all right, but didn't have the emerald quality of a ruby-throat. And then he turned his head...gorget not fully developed...and a flash of pink! pepto-bismol pink....as in a pink paint mark! I was remarking all of this out loud to my husband and the words, "he had better watch out because the Ruffie is coming" no sooner came out of my mouth when SLAM the Rufous came down on the pink-marked bird and knocked it off the perch. I was looking through the binoculars at the time, and it was pretty spectacular! The Ruffie went to the feeder like he owned the place and then flit! he was gone. A few minutes later I saw a very skittish pink-marked stranger at the front yard feeder. He ate and then hid in the middle of the crape-myrtle tree. A mature male ruby-throat showed up at the feeder, but pink-mark didn't even challenge him, he just stayed hidden.

Here's a shot of Ruffie extracted from the video...unfortunately from the back as he sat at the feeder



And a bit of video of the stranger as he hides. If anyone's missing a pink-marked bird let me know!I couldn't tell which leg he's banded on, but maybe he'll be here tomorrow

Click here to see the Stranger