I read that on the Pa bird list along with two green violet ears seen recently one in Ohio for one day only and also in Wisconsin a few weeks ago no pictures though. Sarah

I think that's amazing! All the way up north in Michigan those are great videos by the way thanks for posting standard. Sarah

I also saw a newspaper report, linked below, about a white ruby-throated in ohio.

does one of the parents have to be white to produce a albino or leucistic offspring? is it something that is recessive and can just 'appear' one generation?

when the article stated that no white hummingbirds have been known to survive migration, it made me wonder how there could be new baby white ones. it must be recessive. ??

Here is a link that might be useful: leucistic in ohio

WOW! That is really exciting news. Those guys tend to stay down south...must've hitched a ride back north with a winter tourist :o)

~ Cat

I heard about that on Pa list too. I am just guessing it was a birth defect they don't have any protection against the sun

This is indeed a first, and one more in a recent string of remarkable records for this species! Beyond southeastern Arizona, where this common bird of Mexico's Sierra Madre is rare and local but regular, there have been White-eareds in southern Colorado (another state first), southern New Mexico and Trans-Pecos Texas (both of which have had a few records over the years), Lubbock, Texas (on the high plains waaaay out of both range and habitat for any self-respecting White-eared), and now Michigan. 2005 is truly the Year of The 'Ear!

how exciting and fascinating. do you think these birds are vagrant/strays, or is the species expanding its territory?

perhaps vagrant strays are how a species begins to expand its territory?

I wonder if expansion has something to do with decimation of habitat or overcrowding on the traditional range?

You could argue that it's the vagrants/strays that expand a species' range. Certainly some of the birds in New Mexico and Texas have a good chance at survival as long as they have the instinct to migrate before it gets too cold.

Though there's not a lot of hard evidence to back it up, I think that these events are related more to good conditions than bad - a bigger crop of youngsters means more with off-kilter navigation systems who end up in weird places. Many of the early pioneers might not survive, but future "strays" of semitropical species should have an advantage as global warming pushes the limits of suitable breeding and wintering climates further north. One big problem with this scenario is that the natural vegetation, and therefore the birds' habitats, probably won't be able to keep pace with that northern climate shift, leaving the pioneers to either adapt or....

I sure would like to see one at my place. I get them with white spots on their heads, but not like that!

Is that far from you birdlegs? There was one a month ago in July in Colorado here's the picture from Colorado. Sarah

Here is a link that might be useful:

This is one species I have not heard of nor seen before. THis is very interesting.

Penny

Sarah,
Dh says it's only about a hour away from us. I just posted one with dark feathers on it's chest. I also saw one with alot of white on one wing.

This is BIG news.
I haven't seen a White-eared hummer since I saw them in
Ramsey canyon.

Maybe we'll get lucky and they will come east more frequently.

Maybe you guys have one visiting your feeder! I can't tell they all look like hummingbirds to me. Birdlegs you should go and visit I will probably get in trouble for posting this but They say visitors are welcome and I know if you have a rare or first hummingbird in the state if it's posted you get visitors from all over that state and they are usually welcome birders are nice people anyway here's the post. Sarah

Here is a link that might be useful: Humnet