Mystery regarding the hummingbirds may be solved. They were most likely not rufous, but Anna's hummingbirds. Me bad, I just assumed they were rufous hummers because that's all I've ever seen at my feeder and I didn't actually view them, my daughter did.

After further conversation, what she described fits Anna's better. Also Anna's are known to feed on small insects and also from sapsuckers drillings, as well, which may explain how they are sustaining themselves in my area this winter.

These wee fellows have expanded their resident range from California all the way up to Vancouver Island in recent years and their population in this area has exploded. Adventurous birds or global warming?