Not Alarmed but why?

[Stan Gorodenski]

I think I see your point. Sort of like behavioral conditioning from 
having encountered for some during its feeding activites hummingbirds 
and other animals frequenting thistle heads and flowers that were not a 
threat.
Stan

Woody Woods wrote:

>Just a SWAG-- Scientific Wild-Ass Guess-- I'd suspect that skippers and
>hummingbirds are frequent acquaintances at nectar sources where neither is a
>predator of the other; both taxa may have "realized" that in an evolutionary
>sense. You plus net, on the other hand... well, to that skipper you are the
>unknown and risky. Not sure your size is important; I doubt a skipper would
>consider an elephant a threat.
>
>Woody
>
>  
>
>>From: Stan Gorodenski <stan_gorodenski at asualumni.org>
>>Reply-To: stan_gorodenski at asualumni.org
>>Date: Thu, 21 Jul 2005 08:59:59 -0800
>>To: leps-l at lists.yale.edu
>>Subject: Not Alarmed but why?
>>
>>Recently I observed a Silver Spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) feeding
>>on a thistle head. A hummingbird flew very close by it to a spot
>>opposite to the position of the skipper where it proceeded to feed also.
>>It amazed me that the skipper did not get alarmed and fly off because if
>>I or my net were to come this close it would do jus that. I'm guessing
>>that the biggest threat of predation comes from birds which are closer
>>to the size of the hummingbird, not large animals this size of us. Can
>>anyone give an explanation for this differential response? Is the size
>>of the hummingbird below the trigger threshhold level for a response,
>>for example?
>>Stan
>>
>>
>>
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