Imagine for a moment that you're a hummingbird living near our home. Every day, you feed at the feeders that somehow never run out of nectar. How do you perceive those feeders and the humans that replenish them?
I got to pondering this question as I refilled our feeders this morning (five quarts of hummer juice!). I know the hummingbirds recognize me, as their behavior is much different (unafraid) with me than with other people. I can also see that they know to check out the refilled feeders when I bring them out, after leaving the empty feeders alone. So there is some consciousness there of the situation. But I wonder exactly what it is?
For instance, do the hummers see the feeders as some sort of “magic flower” that somehow never runs out of nectar? Or do they realize that the feeders are contrivances for their benefit? And how do they perceive me? As some sort of “nectar god”? If mother hummers can talk to their babies, what do they tell them about the feeders and me?
Inquiring minds want to know!
