Central Oregon’s birding community is abuzz after recent rare sightings at the Land Trust’s Camp Polk Meadow Preserve. In early July, birders spotted at least four black-chinned hummingbirds feeding on the native milkweed patch at the Preserve. While black-chinned hummingbirds can be common in some areas, they are not frequently seen in Central Oregon! Word quickly spread and birders showed up to see this exciting discovery.

Male black-chinned hummingbirds have an incredibly showy purple swipe of feathers along their throat, making the sighting even more beautiful to watch. While there’s been speculation on whether the hummingbirds are mating and nesting at Camp Polk Meadow Preserve, nothing has been confirmed.

This is not the first time the native milkweed patch at Camp Polk Meadow Preserve has been the center of attention. Last year, Western monarch butterflies were also spotted in the milkweed—a relatively rare sighting after decades of monarch butterfly population declines. Central Oregon’s two types of native milkweed—showy and narrowleaf—are not only critical to the monarch butterfly’s survival, but are also great food sources for other local pollinators, including black-chinned hummingbirds!

We look forward to seeing both common and more rare pollinator sightings in this milkweed patch in the future!

 

Learn more:

• Hummingbirds of Central Oregon
• Help Central Oregon's pollinators by getting free native showy milkweed seeds from the Land Trust!