Some sort of strange tribal dance…at least that’s what it looked like my neighbor was doing. He was standing in his garage, gliding to the right and then to the left, repeatedly lifting his hands toward the ceiling. In reality, he was trying to capture a hummingbird that had flown in and couldn’t get back out!

So, why do these little birds insist on flying into garages? I didn’t know the answer until just last week, when I was visiting with the owner of the local Wild Birds Unlimited and she passed along a bit of interesting trivia…the reason hummingbirds fly into our garages is because we all have trumpet vines dangling from the ceilings, and hummingbirds LOVE these flowers.

Okay, so the vines are actually red emergency release handles that the government requires garage doors to have, but to these little fellows, they look like a delectable source of nectar.

So – here’s a helpful hint – if you want to keep hummingbirds out of your garage, paint the release cord and handle black or cover it with black electrical tape…because once they are in, they are tricky to get out!

And put out a nectar feeder, because they are delightful to watch!

And just in case you were curious, my husband (the same guy who is a proficient canoe paddler and skillful skipping stone gatherer) went over and gently caught the hummingbird in a straw hat and set it free.  My neighbor was able to stop his tribal dancing, and the bird lived happily ever after.  All’s well that ends well.