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Hummingbirds

2K views 26 replies 24 participants last post by  Gavetta 
#1 ·
After the last 2-3 years I thought these little birds were on their way to instinction here in southern Vt. This year I’m lucky if I can go out any door without being buzzed by one and they’re fighting over the feeder all day. Anybody else notice the increase in birds?
 
#8 ·
We have some of 'em here

I remember reading somewhere that when hummingbirds migrate (how many thousand miles from N. Amer. to Central Amer.?) that they sometimes change their route based on where they are finding food. Maybe your local natural bird food supply has changed?
 
#9 ·
We have 7 - 30 oz feeder and about 40-60? hummers that empty them every 2-3 day. About 10-12 lbs of sugar a week. Can't go in the back yard without 10-20 hummers buzzing about or feeding. I will try to get a picture of 7 feeding at once with several waiting for an open space. They are very entertaining and a joy to watch. At some times of the day only few about but look out when they are hungry.
 
#10 ·
Lots of hummingbirds down here in Florida. My backyard is about 3/4 acre and has become heavily wooded over the years. There are numerous trumpet vines growing and blooming that attract hummingbirds. One day I was out walking about and saw what I thought was a hummingbird. Turned out to be a hummingbird MOTH. Quite the mimic and amusing to watch.
 
#12 ·
Lots of them in our suburban yard in So Cal. We have a nice big Ficus they nest in and lots of feeders and plantings that attract them. Last year Orioles started nesting here too and came back to stay, looks like. We are generous with the seed feeder too, lots of Finches, Mourning Dove, and Sparrows. The Fork Tail Swallows started showing up a week ago. Now and then a Peregrine will land on our back fence to see what (or who) is on the menu.
 
#13 ·
There is a direct correlation to the amount of flowering plants in an area and the frequency of humming bird sightings. We have a tree on the ranch that attracts hummingbirds in little swarms. At a relatives house in town where there are few flowers we see no humming birds.
 
#14 ·
Hummingbirds...........

We have an unused TV antenna tower with morning glory vines going up 20 feet or more and high humidity here in the Ohio river valley makes for heavy dew and lots of nectar in those flowers. Every morning the hummers hit the vines first and later in the day use the feeders..................Also have seen yellow cardinal this year for first time!
 
#15 ·
Lots of Ruby-Throated Hummers here in Central VA. They seem to remember where the feeders are from year to year. We know to break out the feeders about the time our apple trees start to bloom. Almost like clockwork!

A few years ago, as autumn set in and the temps got colder and colder, I was concerned about one Hummingbird that seemed to have missed the migration. My dilemma was "do I keep feeding him to give him energy for the long trek south, or do I cut off the food so he'll leave for the long trek south.

After all the others headed south, this one stuck around for several weeks. He was well fed with our feeder. Then one day he didn't show (after a freezing night). I was worried, but a day later as I was out on our porch, he stopped by, got some feed, then hovered in front of me for about a minute and then flew away. I didn't see him again that year. It was like he was assuring me he was okay and said "goodbye".

But...

The next late spring, I am sure he showed back up, hovered in front of me for about a minute, and then headed over to where we had hung a feeder. He had me trained well, and I went inside to mix their food and present it to them.

I have had several experiences where they get into my shop and focus on getting out at the fixed skylights. I would seem they couldn't figure our they needed to drop down to escape through the open overhead doors. I spent countless hours trying to get them to leave through the open doors, with no success. I then asked my departed Fi (avatar) for help, and within a minute or so, they either dropped down and flew out the open door or let me hold them in my hands and carry them up to the house and deposit them at their feeder to recover.

This was frequent enough to where I am convinced there is something special beyond this mortal life. Whenever I see a hummingbird, I thing of my Fi: one who never bothered then - even though they sounded (to me) just like carpenter bees - which Fi felt was one of her earthy missions to eradicate from our farm.

We love our hummers, and always will. When it comes time for them to head south this year, they will be missed. But I know to have their feeders loaded up next year when the apple trees bloom...
 
#16 ·
The hummingbird numbers took a serious nose dive last summer and are even worse for this year. All bird numbers are way down except for the mockingbirds. Three years ago I had about 50 blue quail coming into my feeder morning and night. They dropped to about a dozen last summer and just yesterday morning three pair came in to eat after only having three birds for most of this summer. I do not know the reason for the low numbers of birds but it sure has cut down on my feeding expenses.
 
#19 ·
Same as above here in Northwest Florida. We have multiple flowers, bushes and feeders for Hummingbirds and Butterfly's.
We did not see one Hummingbird this spring and just a few butterfly's this summer. We have not seen one Monarch butterfly this summer either......:(
 
#18 ·
Obviously here in Central Texas we are in the migration zone. Wife and I plant wild flower and place feeder to support the hummers... and each year we got OUR locals to stay and reproduce...

Mostly ours are not colorful or in any way distinctive EXCEPT by their behavior...

I drink my morning coffee on front porch and evening drinky poo...when feeder are empty or low they buzz and chatter at me...but the real comical is our hummers fighting each other, OR bees, OR red wasps for a turn at the feeder

best I can figure we have about 8 locals....here in a few weeks going back south we will see up to 50~75 a day passing through....many very colorful...( how we know they are not locals)
 
#25 ·
Since my original post the hummingbird numbers have made quite an improvement here. All summer long we counted just three birds at the morning and evening feeding frenzies. All at once we have at least four times that number but they get hard to count as the numbers increase. We put a second feeder up as two of the new arrivals were of the rufus type and all that was happening at one feeder was sort of a constant hummingbird bar fight with none of them getting to feed. The hummingbirds, with the help of some sparrow sized birds that I have idea what are, are emptying the two feeders in a day and a half.
 
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