It seems that in addition to the sugar water at the feeders, they live on tiny insects that they find on blossoms - that's where they get their protein.
From Michigan, they fly to the Belize/Honduras area in the Fall - it's hard to believe that these tiny birds can get that far away. In fact, the majority of the newly hatched ones don't make it - only about 25% of them arrive at their destination. The older birds have better luck.
Dick learned that if there's a wind of 25 mph, they can't make any headway! Their life expectancy is only 3 to 5 years.
