A Guide to Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds | Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds
Hummingbird Feeding Guide
Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds
Attracting hummingbirds to your backyard is all about providing them desirable alternatives to what nature readily serves up. These high-metabolism animals rely largely on the nectar of plants but don’t limit their feeding habits exclussively to flowers.
Though nectar is a fabulous source of sweet, sugary energy, it fails miserably at providing other key nutrients critical to the bird’s survival. In addition, as nectar isn’t something a hummingbird can readily pass on to their young, hummingbirds also rely on insects as a source of protein, vitamins and minerals.
Of course, when we think about hummingbird feeding, offering a selection of bugs isn’t all that appealing. The objective is to catch glimpses of these beautiful animals hovering effortlessly at a hummingbird feeding station or flower and, if we’re lucky, snap a picture or two to show to our friends. With that in mind, let’s talk a bit about the hummingbird’s finicky tastes.
Hummingbirds feed on very sweet nectar and will reject flowers that don’t offer up at least 12% sugar content. That said, their preference leans to about 25% sugar content. If you would like to attract hummingbirds to a natural garden setting, consider planting Fuchsia, Foxglove, Geraniums, Petunias and Iris.
In addition to feeding hummingbirds a natural selection of nectar, man-made solutions are also available. Hummingbird feeders come in a great variety of designs and colors. A good guide to selecting a feeding station for a hummingbird is to remember that you’re only marginally trying to appeal to the bird’s aesthetic tastes and are more focused on serving up a yummy meal.
Hummingbirds are most readily attracted to the color red so you’ll up your odds of attracting a hummingbird if your feeding station includes the color red. Glass and plastic models available at garden supply centers are equally acceptable. It is very important, though, to keep the feeders clean and well stocked. A dirty hummingbird feeder will be quickly rejected by a fickle hummingbird. If you want to attract and keep attracting hummers, make sure their feeders are kept clean.
While there are commercially available “nectars” on the market, a hummingbird will be just as happy with a nice mix of one part sugar to four parts water. Do not use food coloring and NEVER use honey as a sweetner (more on this later). Also, don’t substitute real sugar for artificial sweetner. Artificial sweetners have absolutely zero nutritional value!
Finally, give the hummingbird its space. While they are bold and can and will become accustomed to your presence (I’ve had them feed 3 feet from me) you should give them the opportunity to grow comfortable with their new food supply before you try making friends. While that covers the basics of hummingbird feeding, there are many considerations not yet discussed which you shouldn’t overlook. Please check back soon for additional information to guide you!
Comments
[…] mentioned in the section on the Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds Hummingbirds have some very specific preferences and needs. While store bought nectars will likely […]
i am mixing my food at 1 part sugar to 2 parts water. am i hurtting my birds. thank you
Bromerick - 1 part sugar to 2 parts water is pretty rich particularly off migration. 1 to 4 is the generally accepted “good” mix with as rich as 1 to 3 parts during migration.
But are you hurting the birds? Probably not. If they are even bothering to visit your feeder they are probably consuming less than they would from a conventional mix. I’ve been unable to find any hard facts based around a too sweet mixture and health impact but one could speculate that the excess sugar, if consumed at a normal bird’s drinking rate, could result in excess energy. Excess energy could result in overheating. Again, though, I suspect they’d either avoid your offering entirely or consume far less than usual.
To be on the safe side I would suggest you thin the mixture and move down to at least a 1 to 3 mixture. If the birds keep coming, reduce it to 1 to 4 and leave it there (unless you live in a colder northern climate in which case leaving it at 1 to 3 should be fine.)
Hope that helps and thanks for stopping by!
Dave
We are wanting to plant hummer friendly plants but have a large local deer population who love flowers. Any ideas for flowers the deer don’t like?
Monte -
That’s a great question and you’ve inspired a post! Expect it to be up tonight and thanks for the inspiration.
Dave
[…] recent comment by a reader in the Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds inspired this post. Monte lives in an area which enjoys a large native deer population and wants to […]
[…] our section on the Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds we mentioned the color red. Hummingbirds are readily attracted to the color red as an initial […]
[…] meet as many of the bird’s needs as you can. First there’s the nectar. As explained in Basics of Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds, you’ll want to ensure you offer flowers that meet the bird’s 25% sugar content […]
Hi I have a quick question. This is my second year of attracting hummers to my flower garden. I do not put a feeder up any more because they don’t eat from it. They much prefer my bee balm and other flowers. I have a female hummer that “guards” the bee balm and fights off any other hummers that might come to feed. Is this normal behavior?
Connie - It’s the most natural behavior in the world. Hummingbirds are territorial and, when they find a good feeding spot, are loathe to share with others. The best solution for this kind of thing is to have flowers (or hummingbird feeders) distributed around a garden so that they are out of sight of one another.
Hi!
After a long stay with my grandmother in England, I was inspired to put up birdfeeders in my garden (including a hummingbird feeder), since hers attracted so many beautiful birds. I am new to this and was wondering if there was anything I should keep in mind with placement of the feeders. For example: height, near/far from flowers, sunny/shady, etc. Thanks a lot!
Hi, Alice. Hopefully your visit to your Grandmother in England was an international trip and you live somewhere in Canada, the US or South America because those are the only places you’ll find hummingbirds. Our poor friends across the pond. 
Height isn’t much of concern at all. I have feeders on stems (look like glass flowers) that have regular visitors and only stand a foot or two off the ground. I also have a feeder hanging at eye level that gets visits. My friend in California has his hanging from a 2nd story balcony and his feathered pals swing by all day long.
Your best bet for initially attracting hummers is either a sunny or mostly sunny location (simply because that’s where the birds look for flowers) but, once attracted, you have some flexibility. I hung a feeder in the back of my home under a shady tree near my pond and it gets regular visitors.
Just note that, if you do place feeders in sunny locations, you’ll need to clean them more frequently.
Near flowers is fine. If they are hummingbird-attracting flowers, your birds may opt for them rather than your feeder. Once the flowers stop blooming, they will likely switch to your feeder as an acceptable alternative.
Last placement tip is to try to keep the feeders out of sight of one-another lest one territorial little bird try to hog them all for himself and drive other visitors away.
Thanks for visiting!
just yesterday, a bird landed in my yard not able to take flight, gave it some water after a while, flew off. It stay on neighbor roof for a while, look back and flew off.