Lanny Chambers' First Hummingbirds (Teachers >>) Lanny Chambers, Journey North's Ruby-throated Hummingbird Expert and creator of Hummingbirds.net Every year, Lanny Chambers collects reports of ruby-throated hummingbirds from all over America. This is a lot of work, and he generously shares his data with Journey North. So there's one hummingbird's arrival we especially like to know about each spring: the first one Lanny gets to see in his Missouri home! Scientists can learn a lot from records kept by citizen observers over many years. Now it's your turn to be the scientist and see what you can learn. Lanny's First Ruby-throated Hummingbird Year Date 2008 April 20 2007 April 20 2006 April 16 2005 April 17 2004 April 20 2003 April 23 2002 April 17 2001 April 19 2000 April 16 1999 April 19 1998 April 16 1997 April 19 1996 April 20 1995 April 20 1994 April 22 Try This! The table to the right shows the dates Lanny's hummingbirds have appeared in recent years. 1. Find where Lanny lives: Lanny lives in Fenton, Missouri (near St. Louis). The latitude of Fenton is 38.513 N. The longitude is -90.435 W. Can you find it on a map? 2. Dig into his hummers' arrival dates: In what year did Lanny's all-time earliest hummingbird arrive? His latest? What is the range of dates for hummer arrivals? (The number of days between the earliest and latest arrival.) 3. Use your Hummingbird Journal to answer these questions: When do you predict Lanny's first rubythroat will appear this year? Why do you predict it will arrive then? What factors do you think could affect when Lanny's hummingbirds arrive? 4. Keep your eyes peeled! Study our ruby-throated hummingbird map and news updates in the next month. As the hummers rush onward, you might want to revise your prediction! This Season Teachers Kids Orientation Registration Search Copyright 1997-2008 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Questions or comments? Contact us.