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Woman Develops Bond With Over 200 Hummingbirds, Now They Complain If She’s Late To Feed Them
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Woman Develops Bond With Over 200 Hummingbirds, Now They Complain If She’s Late To Feed Them

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Meet Melanie Barboni, an assistant researcher in the UCLA Earth, Planetary and Space Science program, who is also known as the ‘hummingbird whisperer’. She built a community of 200 hummingbirds who live outside her office and come to complain if she’s late to serve their dinner.

Barboni has always been a bit obsessed with hummingbirds – even when she was a child in Switzerland, a country with an almost non-existant population of this species. “My dearest dream as a child was to see hummingbirds. Imagine my joy when I found out that my next job assignment would bring me to Los Angeles, where hummingbirds live year-round,” says Barboni.

The woman adds: “I cannot go to a place where they are not there… This is cheesy, but I have seen them help people. They make my life happy. Having a crappy day? Who cares — there are hummingbirds around… Having a good day? Hummingbirds make it better…”

More info: UCLA (h/t: laughingsquid)

Meet Melanie Barboni, an assistant researcher, who is also known as the ‘hummingbird whisperer’

They come to complain if she’s late to serve their dinner

“My dearest dream as a child was to see hummingbirds”

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“Imagine my joy when I found out that my next job… would bring me… where hummingbirds live”

“I cannot go to a place where they are not there… I have seen them help people”

“They make my life happy. Having a crappy day? Who cares — there are hummingbirds around…”

See the beauty of 200 hummingbirds for yourself:

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sara_zakko avatar
Flinkie
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This story reminds me of my grandma :D she used to feed birds everyday but one day she forgot, so the bird took a flower from her garden, and just ripped it. He was threatening to ruin all the plants in her garden if she won't feed him. 😂

hamletstwin avatar
Hamlets twin
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"It's a lovely garden you got here. It would be a shame if anything happened to it."

Load More Replies...
smissions avatar
S Missions
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Isn't it kind of weird? in the wild they are free and independent. Then someone comes along and makes them so dependent on her for food, so much so that they actually complain if they are not fed, instead of going looking for food themselves. Wouldn't it be interesting if we fed all the hummingbirds in the world. We'd create a species dependent on us for survival. The effect of hummingbirds no longer eating what they usually eat, how will that change the ecosystem? Will they stop pollinating plants and just fly around and hang around the feeder all day? There's a reason why there are signs in zoos that say "Don't Feed the Animals".

captaindash avatar
Full Name
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes. It would be interesting, very interesting if this one woman's bird feeders had the effect of non pollination world-wide. I'm sure this feeder isn't their only source of food. Yes, feeding wildlife isn't a great idea overall, but neither is the creating of artificial plastic hummingbird feeders, and factory farms, and cheeseburgers, yet here we are. Just enjoy it.

Load More Replies...
phoenix_gold avatar
Phoenix Gold
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Plz plant more flower, bush and tree, but not feed them directly.

bwilt avatar
Barbara Wilt
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I feed hummingbirds in my front yard. However, I do NOT have a "hummingbird feeder". Instead, I have zinnias, coneflowers, sun flowers, hibiscus, etc. I love watching the hummingbirds and butterflies (or flutterbies, as I call them).

rnbaden avatar
Robert Baden
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Is maintaining an unnatural amount of flowers really all that different from having a feeder?

Load More Replies...
craz435yt avatar
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The hummingbirds have such amazing colours on their feathers!

jbrunello avatar
MacacoMonkey
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm like that with bunnies. One day I'll be known as the crazy bunny lady (life goals).

diresilverwolf avatar
BREAK YOUr perceptions
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

a human who literally loves their job, something we all want. tbh tho, you really can't go wrong with humming birds. (unless you hate birds)

vanessicabloxgirl avatar
Vanessica Bloxgirl
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

wow they are beautiful. Some people at school call me the bug whisperer. But this is just amazing

lanza130 avatar
Melody Lanzatella
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My dad was a real "mans man"! But how he loved his hummingbirds! I can see him like it was yesterday! A big burly man attending to his hummingbird feeders EVERY DAY!

christianaioannidou avatar
Marceline
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What a sweet lady! It's beautiful that she pumps happiness from giving love to animals in need! I love the way her face shines..!

marionfriedl avatar
Marion Friedl
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I admit I´m jealous on this woman because in Germany we don´t have any hummingbirds, she´s a lucky woman to be able to watch them at the feeder every day, I love those little birds, whenever there´s a docu about them on TV I watch it!!!

donutlsf avatar
dreamworld
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wonderful- childhood dreams can become reality if you have at it. ❤

vniechajczyk avatar
Veronica Niechajczyk
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can only have one bird at a time. They are very territorial and chase each other away. I have no idea how people manage to have so many at once.

sallybrite avatar
Sally Brite
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NORMAL hummingbirds are very territorial and aggressive. These birds are already corrupted and their natural hormonal mechanisms don't work properly anymore. I guess they're domesticated in a way.

Load More Replies...
mjoyce295 avatar
Joyce Miller
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We've gone through 25 pounds of sugar this year feeding ours and the season is not yet over.

tljb1 avatar
Lee from Phoenix
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You are lucky that your hummingbirds get along. Ours here in Phoenix don't like to share and chase each other away from the feeder. They look like little jet fighters zooming through the air with one a couple feet behind the other.

pdgrovebaskets avatar
Pamela Grove
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'd like to know how hummingbirds have helped people. On not saying it couldn't happen, I just can't think of how it would happen. I've seen all sorts of animals do amazing things. They are far more intelligent and far far more aware of our world and how we treat them than most people will admit.

maristeluna avatar
Barbara Elizabeth
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hummingbirds are important pollinators. They also eat insects that are garden and people pests.

Load More Replies...
emilyhlizz avatar
Lynsey Howell
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

i have three feeders on my first floor kitchen window but here in the uk i just get sparrows, wish i had hummingbirds, but i do love my sparrows DSC0015-7-...e64d3c.jpg DSC0015-7-59ac472e64d3c.jpg

jlstafford22 avatar
Jody Stafford
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How does she get them to share the feeder like that? Mine fight each other to keep the others away from the feeder that they consider theirs.

ys18dbry avatar
Tiffany Hart
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mind are spoiled: flowers, veggies, bushes, and feeders!!!!!!!

kanna172014 avatar
Shannon McKee
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've always wanted to hold a hummingbird, not to keep it, but just to examine it closely.

rnbaden avatar
Robert Baden
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't think there is as big a difference between planting annual flowers to attract hummingbirds and using a feeder as people think. You are still pulling the birds away from other areas with food that wouldn't be there without your efforts. Especially if you are planting new plants every year.

gabbyhansard104 avatar
Birdgirl45
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love hummingbirds I hold feeders and they come sit at the feeder

phillipeknippel avatar
Phillipe Knippel
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I guess she must be a wonderful woman and i do believe she loves theses birds, but i guess that put a feeder to hummingbirds is not a nice stuff. They can stop to visit flowers and so the polinization would be affected. Other thing is that theses feder must be very clean, or it could develop a kind of fungii that acts like a killer to these birds.

onemessylady avatar
Aunt Messy
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Which is why she cleans it every day before she feeds them. Hummingbirds are NOT the only pollinator on the block.

Load More Replies...
rajordan avatar
Regina Jordan
Community Member
6 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

You can't watch the video bc the stupid memorial service commercial keeps coming on. Turn the thing off for goodness sake or what is the purpose of the story video

sara_zakko avatar
Flinkie
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This story reminds me of my grandma :D she used to feed birds everyday but one day she forgot, so the bird took a flower from her garden, and just ripped it. He was threatening to ruin all the plants in her garden if she won't feed him. 😂

hamletstwin avatar
Hamlets twin
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"It's a lovely garden you got here. It would be a shame if anything happened to it."

Load More Replies...
smissions avatar
S Missions
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Isn't it kind of weird? in the wild they are free and independent. Then someone comes along and makes them so dependent on her for food, so much so that they actually complain if they are not fed, instead of going looking for food themselves. Wouldn't it be interesting if we fed all the hummingbirds in the world. We'd create a species dependent on us for survival. The effect of hummingbirds no longer eating what they usually eat, how will that change the ecosystem? Will they stop pollinating plants and just fly around and hang around the feeder all day? There's a reason why there are signs in zoos that say "Don't Feed the Animals".

captaindash avatar
Full Name
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes. It would be interesting, very interesting if this one woman's bird feeders had the effect of non pollination world-wide. I'm sure this feeder isn't their only source of food. Yes, feeding wildlife isn't a great idea overall, but neither is the creating of artificial plastic hummingbird feeders, and factory farms, and cheeseburgers, yet here we are. Just enjoy it.

Load More Replies...
phoenix_gold avatar
Phoenix Gold
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Plz plant more flower, bush and tree, but not feed them directly.

bwilt avatar
Barbara Wilt
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I feed hummingbirds in my front yard. However, I do NOT have a "hummingbird feeder". Instead, I have zinnias, coneflowers, sun flowers, hibiscus, etc. I love watching the hummingbirds and butterflies (or flutterbies, as I call them).

rnbaden avatar
Robert Baden
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Is maintaining an unnatural amount of flowers really all that different from having a feeder?

Load More Replies...
craz435yt avatar
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The hummingbirds have such amazing colours on their feathers!

jbrunello avatar
MacacoMonkey
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm like that with bunnies. One day I'll be known as the crazy bunny lady (life goals).

diresilverwolf avatar
BREAK YOUr perceptions
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

a human who literally loves their job, something we all want. tbh tho, you really can't go wrong with humming birds. (unless you hate birds)

vanessicabloxgirl avatar
Vanessica Bloxgirl
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

wow they are beautiful. Some people at school call me the bug whisperer. But this is just amazing

lanza130 avatar
Melody Lanzatella
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My dad was a real "mans man"! But how he loved his hummingbirds! I can see him like it was yesterday! A big burly man attending to his hummingbird feeders EVERY DAY!

christianaioannidou avatar
Marceline
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What a sweet lady! It's beautiful that she pumps happiness from giving love to animals in need! I love the way her face shines..!

marionfriedl avatar
Marion Friedl
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I admit I´m jealous on this woman because in Germany we don´t have any hummingbirds, she´s a lucky woman to be able to watch them at the feeder every day, I love those little birds, whenever there´s a docu about them on TV I watch it!!!

donutlsf avatar
dreamworld
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wonderful- childhood dreams can become reality if you have at it. ❤

vniechajczyk avatar
Veronica Niechajczyk
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can only have one bird at a time. They are very territorial and chase each other away. I have no idea how people manage to have so many at once.

sallybrite avatar
Sally Brite
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NORMAL hummingbirds are very territorial and aggressive. These birds are already corrupted and their natural hormonal mechanisms don't work properly anymore. I guess they're domesticated in a way.

Load More Replies...
mjoyce295 avatar
Joyce Miller
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We've gone through 25 pounds of sugar this year feeding ours and the season is not yet over.

tljb1 avatar
Lee from Phoenix
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You are lucky that your hummingbirds get along. Ours here in Phoenix don't like to share and chase each other away from the feeder. They look like little jet fighters zooming through the air with one a couple feet behind the other.

pdgrovebaskets avatar
Pamela Grove
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'd like to know how hummingbirds have helped people. On not saying it couldn't happen, I just can't think of how it would happen. I've seen all sorts of animals do amazing things. They are far more intelligent and far far more aware of our world and how we treat them than most people will admit.

maristeluna avatar
Barbara Elizabeth
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hummingbirds are important pollinators. They also eat insects that are garden and people pests.

Load More Replies...
emilyhlizz avatar
Lynsey Howell
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

i have three feeders on my first floor kitchen window but here in the uk i just get sparrows, wish i had hummingbirds, but i do love my sparrows DSC0015-7-...e64d3c.jpg DSC0015-7-59ac472e64d3c.jpg

jlstafford22 avatar
Jody Stafford
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How does she get them to share the feeder like that? Mine fight each other to keep the others away from the feeder that they consider theirs.

ys18dbry avatar
Tiffany Hart
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mind are spoiled: flowers, veggies, bushes, and feeders!!!!!!!

kanna172014 avatar
Shannon McKee
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've always wanted to hold a hummingbird, not to keep it, but just to examine it closely.

rnbaden avatar
Robert Baden
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't think there is as big a difference between planting annual flowers to attract hummingbirds and using a feeder as people think. You are still pulling the birds away from other areas with food that wouldn't be there without your efforts. Especially if you are planting new plants every year.

gabbyhansard104 avatar
Birdgirl45
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love hummingbirds I hold feeders and they come sit at the feeder

phillipeknippel avatar
Phillipe Knippel
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I guess she must be a wonderful woman and i do believe she loves theses birds, but i guess that put a feeder to hummingbirds is not a nice stuff. They can stop to visit flowers and so the polinization would be affected. Other thing is that theses feder must be very clean, or it could develop a kind of fungii that acts like a killer to these birds.

onemessylady avatar
Aunt Messy
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Which is why she cleans it every day before she feeds them. Hummingbirds are NOT the only pollinator on the block.

Load More Replies...
rajordan avatar
Regina Jordan
Community Member
6 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

You can't watch the video bc the stupid memorial service commercial keeps coming on. Turn the thing off for goodness sake or what is the purpose of the story video

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