Anyone else have an unusually large number of hummingbirds this year?

[sixdogs]

What amazing little birds. Despite decades of taking them for granted, having legions of them around our feeders over the summer is a whole new adventure. And to think ours fly 1000+ miles one way and manage to survive and make the return trip, sometimes to the same area and feeders.

As well, we find dozens of hummingbird nests after the season. Some blow out of the trees after leaf drop and some can be seen still in place. Around here, the nests often have a "fluffier" look to them with more grass-type components. They are pretty small.

 

[Frankenkubota]

Recently read you should keep your feeders within short range of cover for the hummers. Apparently larger birds hang around to prey on the hummers so you gotta give them some cover.

If that friggin wren builds her nest in my rtv again this spring it ain't gonna make it!,,,

 

[goeduck]

My resident Annas are consuming more this winter, so the population must be going up. Either that or Dragoneggs has not been diligent and his kids are over here.

I almost need to put back up a second feeder, I usually only have to do that in summer when the travelers are here. We are lucky here to have the little guys year round.

 

[Doofy]

Lucky man. We have one every couple of years. Last year we even had a Hummingbird Moth.

 

[dragoneggs]

Nope but I noticed the Annas were poking around my dying hanging flower pots near the feeder. So I refreshed my feeder yesterday. They are still around but getting spoiled I guess.

Question... how many days is your feeder being used before they decide it is 'stale' and they stop frequenting it?

 

[goeduck]

Nope but I noticed the Annas were poking around my dying hanging flower pots near the feeder. So I refreshed my feeder yesterday. They are still around but getting spoiled I guess.

Question... how many days is your feeder being used before they decide it is 'stale' and they stop frequenting it?

My sugar water has not been up long enough all year to get spoiled. Last spring I changed the way I clean the feeders so that helps. The bottom of the pan where the sugar water sits on my feeders is slightly rough. I do not know why anyone would design it that way but they did. I would scrub and scrub and the rough area would be clean but slightly dark in spots. So I bought an extra feeder and the pan out of cycle would periodically get a bleach bath for a day and then get a trip through the dishwasher along with the glass bottle. My feeders completely separate for cleaning. More or less solved my problem of an occasional spoiled batch. The mold never had a head start after that. I also make sure I wipe the bottle threads clean since they harbored slight strips of mold. Higher consumption rates help as well.

 

[dragoneggs]

I think I need to boil or somehow sterilize my feeders. I just use hot water and a bit scrubbing. Thinking that is not doing a good enough job to extend the time between refreshing the nectar.

 

[sixdogs]

If you're using well water, which you should, I think the ground water bacteria makes the mix spoil in a couple of days in the summer here. I've read not to use city water because the added chemicals are not good for the birds. City water would likely last longer but not be good for them. In the summer, we notice that fresh water brings more birds. The added changes are an extra effort but it's really paid off in far more bird visits.

You guys sure are fortunate to have birds this time of year.

 

[psvfd]

If you're using well water, which you should, I think the ground water bacteria makes the mix spoil in a couple of days in the summer here. I've read not to use city water because the added chemicals are not good for the birds. City water would likely last longer but not be good for them. In the summer, we notice that fresh water brings more birds. The added changes are an extra effort but it's really paid off in far more bird visits.

You guys sure are fortunate to have birds this time of year.

I have not seen a hummer in months We do use well water and soak then scrub feeders between use. We have about six feeders to change out the four spots in summer. No feeders out now!

 

[Oaktree]

If you're using well water, which you should, I think the ground water bacteria makes the mix spoil in a couple of days in the summer here. I've read not to use city water because the added chemicals are not good for the birds. City water would likely last longer but not be good for them. In the summer, we notice that fresh water brings more birds. The added changes are an extra effort but it's really paid off in far more bird visits.

You guys sure are fortunate to have birds this time of year.

We have plenty of birds in the winter, no hummingbirds obviously but plenty of woodpeckers, jays, chickadees, nuthatches, finches, etc.
Never really thought about city water vs well water (moot point here...we're a long way from any municipal water source), but it makes sense. We seem to go a week or so before the mixture goes stale and visits taper off.

Last year we even had a Hummingbird Moth.

We have hummingbird moths here too...they're fun to watch. They love my wife's beebalm and especially milkweed out in the field. The hummingbirds like milkweed too, and it's a real magnet for bees.