The Relationship Between Hummingbirds & Flowers

Nectar and Pollination

• Hummingbirds and flowers have a mutually satisfying relationship. Flowers produce nectar, which attracts the hummingbirds. To reach the sugary liquid, a hummingbird must stick its head into the flower. As it does, it brushes up against the pollen present on the flower's stamen. The pollen sticks to the bird, and when it moves to another flower or plant, some of the pollen rubs off on that plant. In this way, flowers are pollinated, and hummingbirds are fed.

Flowers

• Flowers that attract hummingbirds are not only nectar-rich but many are shaped in such a way as to easily accommodate the fast-beating wings of the birds. In addition, most feature thick petals that will not easily tear if the hummingbird's beak brushes up against them. Many of them are also red in hue--difficult for bees to see but attracts hummingbirds.

Hummingbird Tongues

• Hummingbirds have long, thin tongues designed to reach the nectar held deep inside flowers. Although scientists originally thought that the tongues worked much like a straw, they discovered that hummingbird tongues are actually forked at the tip, and the two pieces of the tongue work to "roll" the liquid up the tongue and down the throat. The tongue moves in and out of the nectar quickly, taking about 13 "licks" per second, according to the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension website. In addition, because of their rapid, almost constant flight, hummingbirds need to feed almost constantly. A single hummingbird visits hundreds of flowers each day, pollinating each one it visits.

Hummingbird Wings

• It's not just the tongues of hummingbirds that are specifically designed for feeding on nectar from flowers. Their wings are designed in such a manner that they can keep a hummingbird hovering in one place long enough to drink from the flowers. They beat so quickly, in fact--up to 53 times per second, according to Purdue University's Forestry and Natural Resources website--that you often hear the hum of a hummingbird's wings before you see it.