Gerry & Sandra Carter

Many customers have asked me why they are not seeing as many hummers in their yards as in past years while other customers have commented that it has been an especially busy season for hummers. Some folks have commented that they spotted ruby-throated hummingbirds (predominate birds in eastern United States) earlier this year, but then the birds disappeared. I have been researching various sources to come up with answers to these questions and thought I would share what I have learned. 

     You will see the most birds in August and September as females and this years fledglings alomg with males all visit feeders and begin to build up weight for the long flights back to Costa Rica and Honduras (by the end of the summer this years fledglings will be larger that their parents as Nature has put extra weight on them to prepare for their inaugural migration).

     Female ruby-throats generally select nesting sites near wetlands for nesting and being close to a feeder is not a concern but being close to a plentiful supply of insects nearby is (they do not form a family unit and the female does all the nest building and child rearing). Males are very territorial and females don't generally build nests in a male's territory. Since feeders in your backyard attract male birds, they become non favorite spots for female nest building and trips to distant feeders take too much time away from the eggs. The female needs minerals that insects provide and after the eggs hatch, the young need protein and minerals not found in sugar water to develop and so the female stays busy catching insects and spiders for her developing young. Spiders are a favorite food. And spider’s webs are used in nest building.  When the chicks fledge from their nests you can expect to see more hummers darting in to feeding stations as the population has just increased substantially in the neighborhood!

     The amount of blooming wild flowers and domesticated blooming plants will affect how many hummers and their frequency of visits to your feeders at any given time of the season. That is why it is important to put out feeders early (March 15^th in South Carolina and keep them in place until you do not see any birds, can be as late as Thanksgiving with an occasional bird wintering over in which case you would continue to feed). Keep nectar fresh!
You will see many hummers in late March and April as ruby-throats migrate northward and pass by feeding stations that are set up (Many folks call these early sightings "scouts", they should be called "migrates" as they just passing through). Studies have shown that migrating birds will visit the same feeding stations on their migration routes both going northward and southward and in successive years. During migration these birds have flown a long way and need frequent feeding stops to replenish energy levels, flowers and sugar nectar stations are the sources they need. Ruby-throats have a heart rate around 225 BPM while at rest and at more than 1200 BPM while foraging or in combat with wings beating between 70 and 200 times a second. It’s takes a lot of energy to do that! (The correct ratio for making your own nectar is 1 part white sugar to 4 parts water and DO NOT add food coloring, the feeder supplies all color needed to attract birds). Hang more feeders to attract more birds especially during migration cycles.

Gerry Carter