Attracting the tiniest of winged visitors

Checking the latest posts on social media, hummingbirds are back in full force. So if you do not have your feeder up, it is time!

If you are new to these little visitors, you may be wonder how to attract more hummingbirds to your backyard. For that question I refer to an organization called the Hummingbird Society. They have a great website with lots of good information for attracting hummingbirds. Some of the suggestions that the group makes are as follows, or go to their website at www.hummingbirdsociety.org.

Flowers are the natural way to attract hummingbirds to your yard. However, for many people a flower garden is not an option: no space for a garden; no time to tend it; and perhaps no skill or interest in the garden approach. If you are one of these people, then man-made feeders filled with a mixture of water and ordinary table sugar (sucrose) are an important alternative. Even for those with gardens, feeders provide a supplement to flowers that increases the likelihood of attracting hummingbirds.

Sugar, whether from a flower or a feeder, is essential for a hummingbird’s diet. It provides the quick fuel for flight that it needs during waking hours; it is not “junk food.” (Human metabolism is not comparable to hummingbird metabolism!) Hummingbirds rely on insects and tiny spiders to provide protein for their diet, since neither flowers not sugar-water mixtures will provide it.

Tests have shown that hummingbirds prefer sucrose in flower nectar over other sugars such as fructose and glucose, so your feeder, with the proper ratio of ingredients, becomes a good approximation to the flowers hummers like best.

Formula–4 parts water to 1 part sugar. Use regular tap water and white sugar. No artificial colors (red dye does not help attract hummingbirds) or other additives. Never use honey or artificial sweeteners, which may kill the birds. I use an old milk jug and mix 4 cups hot water to 1 cup sugar. Unused portions of a mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Feeder Design–The most important consideration in choosing a feeder is your ability and personal willingness to keep it clean, because feeders vary widely in their ease of cleaning. Feeders with parts that cannot be easily cleaned should be avoided. Some designs can be disassembled and washed in a dishwasher, a convenience but not a necessity.

Most all designs work, but some “vacuum” designs cause a dripping problem which will inevitably attract ants. Perches on the feeder are optional, but should be removable if being used when temperatures are at or below freezing. Feeders also vary widely in their attractiveness, from the beautiful to the ugly; be sure you want to look at the design every day!

Feeder Maintenance–Any mixture of sugar and water will ferment and host the growth of mold spores. This limits the usefulness of the mixture, and it must be discarded regularly to avoid these problems.

In moderate temperatures, such as 60-85 degrees F a mixture should last about 3 days; less at higher temperatures, slightly longer at cooler temperatures. Regardless of the mixture’s age, discard it immediately if you see cloudiness or you see mold growing in the feeder.

Always clean a feeder thoroughly before refilling; do not “top off” a feeder which is low in mixture. Clean with warm water and detergent, and rinse very thoroughly. Use only as much mixture as is being used between refillings to reduce waste. Every few weeks, rinse the cleaned feeder with dilute (1:10) bleach, then rinse thoroughly.

Feeder Pests-Ants, bees, wasps–and even bats–can be a problem. So here are a few tips to help with these annoying little creatures.

Ants can quickly contaminate a feeder solution and make the it very unattractive to hummingbirds. Fortunately, this problem is easily solved. The first and easiest technique, though not always the most effective, is to coat the hanging wire or pole with a spray (such as Pam) or oil. This takes advantage of ants’ aversion to walking on certain substances, including oils and water. One can also buy an “ant moat” at most bird supply stores. The conventional use of the moat is to insert it between feeder and hanging hook, and then fill it with water. In hot, dry climates, this may require frequent refilling.