Humming Birds

Big Dave · #1 07/25/12, 09:22 PM

Usually there are a few humming birds that live around here. This year I saw one. It flew around under the water sprinkler very early in the drought. The feeders are still full and I am going to pull them this week. Anyone else notice them missing?

farmerDale · #2 07/25/12, 09:34 PM

Well, we have been wet, but it does seem like they "come and go". Like that one day you'll see a bunch at the feeder, and then maybe the next week, only one. I am not sure if they are raising young'uns, have a hidden far away stash of nectar in some far away field, or what.

MAke sure you keep the nectar fresh and in the shade, it can get too hot to be healthy in the sun, and goes bad quite fast too with heat, and they will not touch it. We came back from a 12 day trip recently, and our feeder was still full. I never saw a bird for three or four days, but once I replenished the nectar with fresh, all heck broke loose.

andyd2023 · #3 07/25/12, 09:37 PM

We still have them in North East Texas. We have 5 feeders and they need refilling every 4~5 days.
Have seen 2~3 at a time on the feeder.
Andrew

salmonslayer · #4 07/25/12, 09:41 PM

We have more Hummingbirds this year than ever and we are filling the feeders every 3 or 4 days. I just assumed we had more because of the drought.

sustainabilly · #5 07/25/12, 09:49 PM

It's just the opposite for me. We only have one feeder out this year and we've counted as many as eleven (I think) at one time. They did some selective logging on the prop next to us and I think it opened up more nesting/feeding territory. There may be as many as 3 or 4 families. The feeder holds 1 pt and I've been having to fill it twice a day. You should see them jostling for a turn. My son took some video on his phone but we can't figure out how to post it. Something about a chip or ...?

romysbaskets · #6 07/26/12, 03:12 AM

We have them here in record numbers! They fly through our gazebo covered in Pink Jasmine vines and they love the Comfrey purple blossoms. They also flew through the Currant bush branches and kept hovering by my windows in mid air! They flew by my head on a few occasions out by my gardens and flew so close to hubby's face while he works on his computer in the gazebo. It has been so many more than usual. We were commenting on such a rise in their numbers this year! They do not like the feeders we tried putting out, we gave up. They just love all my flowers including the Black berry blossoms...

How are the flowers where you live where the numbers are low? I wonder if there is any correlation between the flowers present there?

Old John · #7 07/26/12, 06:41 AM

There are bunches of hummingbirds out here. We live right in the woods. Of the 8 feeders we have out, there are 2 that hold 30 oz. The rest are 16 oz. The two 30oz. feeders are in the favorite locations. They have to be filled every day. And one gets filled three times in 2 days. The smaller feeders are mostly filled every 2nd or 3rd day.
I make up 3 gallons of syrup for them every 2nd or 3rd day, with 3 qts. of sugar in each batch. That's about 5# of sugar each time. We're using a lot of sugar.
In the evenings the hummers are like a swarm of bees out here.

luvrulz · #8 07/26/12, 07:39 AM

I had several and normally have lots of feeders and have to fill them regular like. This year, I'm afraid it's just too hot for them and they've gone north for cooler climates. Enjoy them, while they're there.... :-( cuz I sure miss watching them.....

farmgal · #9 07/26/12, 08:05 AM

We have more than usual. You know why they call them hummingbirds?

....Cuz they dont know the words..

pancho · #10 07/26/12, 09:56 AM

I don't put out feeders but have lots of plants. There are a couple of nests in my back yard. Every year they nest in the same area. Every evening at about 6pm I can look for a hummingbird to land on a stalk of bamboo growing in my back yard. Always sets in exactly the same place every day.

stamphappy · #11 07/26/12, 11:15 AM

Nary a hummer here and I've got the feeders and the flowers all going. Apparently all of mine are up visiting Romy and livin' the good life!

salmonslayer · #12 07/26/12, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by farmgal

We have more than usual. You know why they call them hummingbirds?

....Cuz they dont know the words..

You cant hear it but I groaned over that one!

Danaus29 · #13 07/26/12, 12:29 PM

I've seen one male at my feeder. But a few days ago I saw him doing his little mating dance under the tree in my front yard. So there are some females around (had several last summer) but I haven't seen them.

Dd saw hummers in the crocosmia when they were blooming well. Those are about done now.

charged · #14 07/26/12, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stamphappy

Nary a hummer here and I've got the feeders and the flowers all going. Apparently all of mine are up visiting Romy and livin' the good life!

Are you sure they aren't visiting the feeders early early in the morning and at dusk? I don't see them at my feeders during the heat of the day.

Oldcountryboy · #15 07/26/12, 09:48 PM

Big Dave, do you live nearby a creek, or lake. I noticed last summer the hummingbirds weren't around the house as usuall. Then one day I was wading the creek that is nearby by house and noticed a whole bunch of hummingbirds playing around. I figured the reason they was hanging out down at the creek is cause next to the edge of the water was still plants with blooming flowers while at the house the plants weren't doing so well cause of the drought.

DianeWV · #16 07/26/12, 10:02 PM

I've been feeding the hummers for years, I really enjoy them. This year the population is the same as previous years. There's alot of hummers, I keep the nectar fresh and lots of plants/flowers for them. Our hummers began to leave from mid to late September. They arrive late April.

Ravenlost · #17 07/26/12, 10:10 PM

We've had two hanging out at our feeder.

badlander · #18 07/26/12, 10:18 PM

Business as usual for us. We have a dominant male who has laid claim to both of the feeders I have hung on my back porch. It's pure entertainment watching him fight off all interlopers so he and his mate can feed freely. He sits on a dead branch in a nearby tree and burns up all his energy dive bombing trespassers.

Today I had a little female come down and watch me hang up clothes to dry. I think she thought the bright colors were flowers.

I did note that the hummers came in later this year, but their numbers are the same and the seem to be handling the drought and heat without ill effects.

jross · #19 07/27/12, 08:50 AM

We are going through 2 qts of nectar per day. This week there are much darker birds arriving and takes a few tries for them to figure out how to thread their beaks through the bee guards. I think the migration has started and these are birds from up north. So far we have used 40 lbs of sugar. As a side note, when they are here, the mosquitos are few.

pancho · #20 07/27/12, 09:15 AM

I had a person tell me the hummingbird was the only bird without legs and they rode on the backs of eagles when they migrated.
Wonder how people come up with these ideas?