They pick some funny spots. I once noticed a nest built right in the middle of a large wind chime, the monsoon was just starting and this tiny bird was on her eggs in a high wind symphony. Ended up lashing the chime to a hardpoint on the ground and wrapping the tubes to to stop them from moving. The bird didn't budge.
> When newly built, the nest is a compact, deep cup constructed of plant down, spider silk and cocoon fibers. As the nestlings grow, the nest stretches into a wider, shallower cup. Nests from cooler areas are thicker-walled than nests from warmer areas.
> Most Black-chinned Hummingbird nests have been found an average of 6 feet and at most 12 feet above the ground, but this may be because nests at this height are easier for observers to find. The nest is often on an exposed small horizontal dead branch well below the canopy.
Hey! That building's right outside my office window. It's really spectacular. There are some time lapse videos of the construction here if you're into that kind of thing. The interactive site (second link from the bottom on that page) is sort of interesting.
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[ 2.8 ms ] story [ 37.7 ms ] threadhttp://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-chinned_Hummingbird...
> When newly built, the nest is a compact, deep cup constructed of plant down, spider silk and cocoon fibers. As the nestlings grow, the nest stretches into a wider, shallower cup. Nests from cooler areas are thicker-walled than nests from warmer areas.
> Most Black-chinned Hummingbird nests have been found an average of 6 feet and at most 12 feet above the ground, but this may be because nests at this height are easier for observers to find. The nest is often on an exposed small horizontal dead branch well below the canopy.
Hopefully nobody disturbs her and her young.
http://enr2math.blogspot.com