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Rockport, Texas is being invaded: 14 million Ruby-throated hummingbirds fly into this suburb of Corpus Christi in a period of 48 hours. They are about to undertake the most remarkable journey, flying non-stop over 1,000 kilometres across the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The trip will take 25 hours without a possibility to pause. By the time they arrive in Rockport, the tiny birds weigh only 4 grams. That is dangerously little: they do not have enough fat to fuel the flight. For this, they need to weigh 6 grams – so they have to add half their body weight very quickly. The local people put up feeders around which hundreds of hummingbirds swarm. They feed and put on weight, ready for this critical and dangerous stage of their migration. After bing-eating, the birds set off. The local coastguard and military can now track the hummingbirds as they fly across the sea by radar. This film reveals the remarkable lives of hummingbirds – one of nature’s most fabulous creatures. Everything about them is s
