I discovered something very interesting that has prompted me to write this post. I learned that mites will hitchhike on a hummingbird. Mites grow and reproduce within the blooms of many flowers by feeding on the nectar and pollen of these plants. Whenever a flower stops blooming and no longer contains nectar, the mite must move on and they do so by catching ride while on the hummingbird.

 

As a hummingbird sucks nectar from a flower, the mites run onto the bird's bill and into the hummingbird's nostrils. The mite only remains on the hummingbird for a short time, until the hummingbird visits another flower of the same species as the one the mite just left.