Hints on hummingbirds

Many people who feed birds really, really want to include hummingbirds in their backyards. The most frequent question I get asked in the spring is, "Seen any hummingbirds yet?"

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is sole breeding hummingbird in the Lehigh Valley. Feeders and flowers are a great way to attract them. They can fly straight and fast but also can stop instantly, hover, adjust their position up or down, or even fly backwards. They live in open woodlands, meadows, forest edges, grasslands, parks, gardens and backyards.

Males can be distinguished by an iridescent ruby-red patch on their throats (hence the name). Females or juveniles lack this patch and have a white throat; their back is a duller green.

A male allows two females to feed

USE SEVERAL FEEDERS. Hummingbirds are very territorial. One reason is that they  must feed every 20 to 30 minutes during waking hours. That daily quantity of food is huge. They can eat double their weight in nectar every day. If we put that in human terms, a 150-pound individual would have to eat 2,900 Oreo cookies every day! 

A hummingbird protects a patch of flowers or a feeder that will supply the quantity of food required. They are especially hungry in the morning after not eating all night. Flowers produce most of their nectar at night to there is plenty of food when the hummingbird is hungriest.

With one feeder, a dominant bird will guard and chase other hummingbirds away. However, by hanging a few feeders in your backyard, one bird cannot guard them all. It gives several birds an opportunity to feed at the same time. Place a feeder 10 to 15 feet from the nearest bush in an open area that receives partial sun. During hot days, change the nectar about every three days. Feeders should be washed every time the nectar is changed.A variety of hummingbird feeders are available at The Bird House.

 


SELECT THE RIGHT FLOWERS. Plant flowers that are red, orange or pink. Select flowers that bloom at different times so the birds will stay for the full season. They have good color vision and even can see ultraviolet light, which humans cannot see. Hummingbirds have no sense of smell. Many of the flowers that they feast on likewise have little or no fragrance.

Among the flowers that hummingbirds welcome are:

• Shrubs and trees such as azalea, butterfly bush, flowering quince, red buckeye (Aesculus pavia), rhododendron (only the red Catawba variety), rose of sharon and weigela. 
• Vines such as trumpet creeper, coral honeysuckle (avoid the yellow invasive Japanese variety), scarlet runner bean (grown in this area as an annual) and red morning glory (also an annual). 
• Perennials such as anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum, sometimes called "hummingbird mint"), bee balm (Monarda), canna, cardinal flower, columbine (red varieties), coral bells, foxglove, lantana, lupine, digitalis (a variety of Penstemon) and yucca (even though it's usually not reddish). 
• Annuals such as beard tongue (another variety of Penstemon), fuchsia, hummingbird flower (Zauschneria), impatiens and red salvia.

Hummingbirds need nectar for energy but they also need protein to thrive. They eat small flying insects such as fruit flies or gnats. You can attract hummingbirds by draping a banana peel in a partly sunny area, away from your patio or deck. The tiny flies will gather and so will the hummingbirds! Another option is to hang an orange half from a tree branch using twine.

OTHER TIPS. Make your backyard more hospitable to hummingbirds. They need places to perch. Most of the time (especially during nighttime) they sit on twigs, stems and clothes lines. They cannot hop or walk. You can add perching locations by offering special perching. These are available at The Bird House.

Never use red dye to color the nectar. Some of the dyes actually are harmful to the birds. Red hummingbird feeders are sufficient. The Bird House has hummingbird nectar in powder form. All you do is add water. Alternatively you could use white sugar in a ratio of 1 part sugar:4 parts boiling water. Once cooled you fill the feeder; any left over nectar can be stored in the refrigerator.

If bees descend on your feeder, try using a feeder with a bee guard. The hummingbird can reach its beak into the guard but bees cannot. They eventually leave.

If ants are a problem, a nectar protector hung above the feeder will block the ants from getting to the feeder. Simply fill the protector with water. You can add a tablespoon of vegetable oil. That should keep the water from evaporating quickly.

Female feeds her chick

You can attract even more hummingbirds to your hanging flower basket by adding a hummingbird feeder designed to hang in the basket.

NESTING. After mating, the male Ruby-throated Hummingbird doesn't participate in rearing the young. The female does all the work. She selects the nesting site, which usually is the top of a branch 10 to 40 feet above the ground. She uses thistle and dandelion seed, and bits of fiber such as cotton, and then adds stands of spider silk to hold everything together. She sometimes will decorate it with bits of lichen and moss, possibly as camouflage.

Hummingbirds have one or two broods, each with one to three eggs. The size of the egg is no more than that of a pea. The female incubates the eggs for 12 to 14 days, longer if the weather is cooler than usual. She then raises the chicks.