Although 16 species of hummingbirds breed in the United States, only Ruby-throated hummingbirds live east of the Mississippi. Four other species have been spotted migrating through Tennessee, but not very often. There is a great map on the internet at www.hummingbirds.net that is updated each spring with the dates that migrating Ruby-throated hummingbirds have been spotted on their northbound trip. For us here in Fairfield Glade the male Ruby-throats usually first arrive somewhere between mid March and the first of April. The females arrive here 2-3 weeks later than the males. So mark your calendars to get those feeders out early next year.
I seem to have had more birds than normal at my feeders this spring. I am not sure of the reason, but I am not complaining. However, don’t be concerned when soon you will probably see fewer hummers at your feeders. This is normal as more flowers become available and also as the females disperse to their own territory to begin nesting. Once the baby hummingbirds hatch they need protein to grow, and that means insects. The female, who does all of the childcare by herself, spends much of her time catching insects for her babies. All hummingbirds need insects to eat as well as nectar. By the way, the male hummingbirds don’t help with anything…their only involvement is some fancy flying to attract a female and then 5 seconds of mating. Make up your own joke here!
Food is what will attract hummingbirds to your house. There are a million kinds of nectar feeders available. I find that the cheap $5 ones from Wal-mart work just as well as the fancy $30 ones…maybe even better. Red dyed nectar is not necessary, in fact it is not even recommended. Homemade sugar water is best. One part white sugar to 4 parts water is the concentration that most closely matches natural flower nectar and the only one you should use. Replace the syrup and clean the feeder every 2-3 days to avoid spoilage and mold. And don’t forget to plant flowers that are recommended for hummingbirds.
Don’t worry about when to take down you feeders in the fall; you won’t cause a hummingbird to stay too long. They head south to spend the winter in Central America based on length of daylight. Plus, if you leave your feeders until Thanksgiving you might see a migrating Rufous or Black-chinned hummer.
Two things that I have gotten calls about are baby hummingbirds and hummingbirds trapped in a garage. Here are the answers. Those baby hummers that you think you saw flying around flowers lately are not hummingbirds at all but rather daytime flying moths, sometimes called “hummingbird moths”. Look for red and yellow on their bodies and long antennae identifying them as moths. When the real baby hummingbirds start flying 40-60 days from now they will actually be bigger than their mothers because the mothers lose weight supplying food to the growing youngsters.
Now if those darn red handles on your garage door ropes have lured a hummingbird inside, here is what to do. If your garage has no windows, close it up tight and the hummingbird, which doesn’t like to fly in the dark, will land on the floor. With as little light as possible from a flashlight, find the bird, gently scoop it up and carry it outside for refueling and freedom. An alternate solution is to hang a feeder near the open garage door and hope the little guy finds it and then heads out instead of back in. If he doesn’t eat in an hour he will die. If all else fails, hang a feeder in the garage to keep the hummer alive until he finds his way out or it gets dark enough to do the flashlight and scoop up method. And last, paint those darn handles black.
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