The Chimney Swifts recently released and photographed in Plymouth were accompanied on their journey to the release site by a pair of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Jessika Madison-Kennedy of the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Roseville brought the hummers just so we swift-watchers could have a close look at them. These two birds cannot be released back into the wild because of physical problems; they are rehab center residents. She held them in her hand as she was feeding them a special food formula. They eat something similar to the sugar-water you and I put in our humingbird feeders, with the addition of a liquid protein. The birds need protein. They get it in the wild by eating insects. The rehab center can't introduce insects to the birds' cage, so they get a supplemented diet. Speaking of hummingbirds, our feeder is as busy with the tiny birds as any time this year, although fall certainly is when we see the largest number of birds. Here's one of Jessika's hummers.