Do Hummingbirds Hum?: Fascinating Answers to Questions about Hummingbirds

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments From GW: It was an honor to be selected as the coauthor of this book, which answers the many questions we are asked while operating a public hummingbird-banding station in Madera Canyon , Arizona. It was a pleasure working with a tireless coauthor, Carol Butler, in bringing this information to a public who enjoys one of nature’s masterpieces, the hummingbird. The more we learn about a group of birds, the more diligent we become about preserving and protecting them and their habitat. Thanks to Susan Wethington, executive director of the Hummingbird Monitoring Network, for reviewing the first draft of the entire text and to Holly Ernest, research veterinarian from the University of California, Davis, for providing insights into the diseases and parasites with which hummingbirds might be afflicted. Jim Burns, Arthur Grosset, Bill Maynard, David Southall, and Allen Tozier very generously allowed us to use some of their magnificent photographs in this book for which we are very grateful. I have been banding birds since 1960, but Ruth Russell, hummingbird bander from Tucson, Arizona, kindly trained me to band hummingbirds. Luis and Nancy Calvo in Madera Canyon, Tom and Edith Beatty in Miller Canyon, and Melva Robin in Arivaca , Arizona, served as site hosts for our monitoring program and we greatly appreciate their support. I appreciate the great patience my wife, Ellen, has for my work at the computer writing and illustrating and for her dedication to the hummingbirdmonitoring research program. Without her help, this might be possible, but certainly not as enjoyable. From CB: My thanks to George West and his wife Ellen for their kindness and hospitality when I visited Arizona to observe and assist George in banding hummingbirds, and to George for his good-humored enthusiasm about this book. My continued appreciation to my agent Deirdre Mullane for her guidance and encouragement, and to Doreen Valentine and the Rutgers University Press staff for their support and input. We also are grateful to Bobbe Needham for her sensitive and intelligent copyediting, and to my daughter Aisha for doing the index. I am also indebted to the people who exhibit and breed hummingbirds —they shared their personal knowledge with me to supplement the limited published information that is available about hummingbirds in captivity. Thanks to Karen Krebbs from the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Ron Boender of Butterfly World, Ken Reininger at the North Carolina Zoo, and the Dutch contingent, who are always wonderfully forthcoming and generous with their time. Ko Veltman, Ton Hilhorst, Hans Bontenbal, and Rob Gase of Artis Royal Zoo enthusiastically took me to visit their new hummingbirds, as did Joost Lammers from Vogelpark Avifauna. Pierre de Wit from Zoo Emmen, hummingbird breeder Jack Rovers, and Menno Schilthuizen from Naturalis were also very supportive and helpful. I am grateful to the others who contributed bits and pieces, answered questions, and furthered my understanding of these beautiful little birds. Everyone , and especially George, made this project possible and enjoyable. xvi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Do Hummingbirds Hum? ...