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hummingbird spot founding story

The idea for this website actually grew out of watching Cornell University School of Ornithology's webcam on a pair of Red-Tailed Hawks that nest on campus every year.  I would intently watch the female hawk lay her eggs, incubate them and raise them with her mate.  Alongside of the webcam picture was a chat board, where I met and got to know many wonderful birdwatchers and I learned a lot about raptors and birds in general.

I have been feeding hummingbirds for many years, so I have learned a lot and read a lot about what to do and what not to do in caring for these precious little birds.  As a physician I have a background in science.  I've also learned a lot from my expert birder friends at the Cornell School of Ornithology.

I started out with a few feeders and started adding more just so I wouldn't have to fill them so often.  But the more feeders I put up, the more birds came.  The more that came, the more feeders I added.  Now there are fifteen feeders serving hundreds and hundreds of birds. 

Then I got the idea to share this wonder with other hummingbird lovers the way Cornell shares their hawk nest with hawk lovers.  That is how Hummingbird Spot was born.  Hummingbird Spot continues to grow and my goal is to provide a place where people can get correct, factual information in a fun environment. This will also be a place were kids can learn about the joy of hummingbirds. 

I'm also opening up to the Spanish community with a Spanish version of the site, since most of the hummingbird species reside in Central and South America.  We are creating a community where we can share information and pictures.  Most of all we can share our love of these wonderful little marvels of nature. 

meet carole turek

founder of the humminbird spot

Hi, I'm Carole.  I was born and raised in Lansdale,  which is a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  I worked for six years before attending college.  I then graduated from Ursinus College and went on to pre-med and medical school at Temple University.  

I've been a practicing physician for over thirty years.  Although I'm not an ornithologist, I am a scientist.  When it comes right down to it, all mammals share common systems, even though they may work a little differently.  

I started feeding hummingbirds about twenty years ago.  I didn't know a lot about how to do it then.  I mixed sugar and water and added a few drops of that dreaded red dye.  I didn't know any better.  I know that many other people who love hummingbirds also want to know what is good and bad.  I know there are also others who want to expand their knowledge about the little birds.  The hope is to provide a place where we can learn together from experts in the field .

MEET FILLMORE, CAROLE'S BOSS AND RESIDENT BIRD EXPERT

Hi!  My name is Fillmore and I'm at the top of the pecking order around here.  Let me tell you how I came to be Carole's boss.
I was very happy living in Newbury Park, California.  I was three years old and I had a big black cage with a big black dog blanket draped over the top in the corner of the kitchen.  There were other birds and a dog around and the humans in the house treated me well.  Then I started to hear talk about moving.  Moving?  We're moving?  Where?  What's going on?


A lady appeared in the kitchen and starting looking at me a lot.  She appeared to be more interested in me than anything else in the house.  Well, OK.  She seems nice enough.  She stayed for about an hour and then she went away.


A couple of days later she came back with this guy.  They came over to my cage and removed my blanket.  She tried to pick me up and I bit her.  I heard her say she needed to take me into an unfamiliar room to calm me down.  They took me into a bathroom. A bathroom! Calm me down? What's going on? They SOLD me?? Seriously???  I proceeded to try to turn these people into hamburger meat.  I bit that guy's thumb until I saw blood.  He was saying to her "Are you sure?" She said it will be OK.  No, it won't be OK my little pretty! We'll see about this!


Next thing I know my cage and I are getting hauled into this Toyota 4Runner and we're on the road.  They were talking about changing my name.  What's wrong with my name?  It's DITTO.  All of a sudden they start calling me "Fillmore."  It looks like I have a new name for a new life.  Fillmore.  That actually sounds kind of distinguished.  A gentleman's name.  Wait until I surprise them by laying an egg in a few years!  Ha Ha
 

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