Many of you have called to ask “where are all the hummingbirds?” I had been wondering the same and even e-mailed my fellow hummingbird enthusiast Bob Sargent, who lives in Alabama but travels throughout the Southeast capturing and banding “unusual” hummingbirds. Bob replied, “I’ve had record numbers of hummers in my yard for the past two weeks or so. I have 40 or so feeders and am using just over a gallon of nectar per day. Our main banding sites all have reported good numbers as well. However, I have had complaints from Louisville, Kentucky and Winston Salem, North Carolina regarding the number of birds.” He recommended that we keep a ledger of our daily sightings as memories are pretty unreliable.
This past Sunday morning I was greatly encouraged when I noticed at least a dozen or so hummers zipping by while having breakfast in the garden. I felt the excitement as I was thinking………it’s time to start hand-feeding!
For those who wonder, it takes time and patience to train the hummers. It just doesn’t happen overnight. I lower the feeders near my patio so they can get accustomed to the height. I like for them to hang even with my chair. The hummers usually ignore me and buzz all around. I just sit patiently and watch.
Finally, I take all the feeders down. I’ve discovered that having only one choice increases the chance of success. I took the bottle that holds the sugar water off and just place the bottom part of the feeder in my hand. The birds swarmed to it.
Once a friendship had been established, I switch to tiny red spice caps. The birds fly to my hands and sit on my fingers. I’ve even had a few bees, too. So far, I’ve only had six hummingbirds to sit on one hand and to drink from the tiny cap. I’d like to see 10 birds sitting all at one time!
Today I watched the males flying from tree to tree. Finally, I had one brave female that came to me and sat down on my trainer, six inches from my face. I named her “Choo Choo” because of the railroad markings on her neck & chest. She was my only visitor.
The birds have been slow in arriving. I only have a few weeks to work with them before they are gone.
Chattyhummer
August 20, 2009
Photographer: John Hamby
This past Sunday morning I was greatly encouraged when I noticed at least a dozen or so hummers zipping by while having breakfast in the garden. I felt the excitement as I was thinking………it’s time to start hand-feeding!
For those who wonder, it takes time and patience to train the hummers. It just doesn’t happen overnight. I lower the feeders near my patio so they can get accustomed to the height. I like for them to hang even with my chair. The hummers usually ignore me and buzz all around. I just sit patiently and watch.
Finally, I take all the feeders down. I’ve discovered that having only one choice increases the chance of success. I took the bottle that holds the sugar water off and just place the bottom part of the feeder in my hand. The birds swarmed to it.
Once a friendship had been established, I switch to tiny red spice caps. The birds fly to my hands and sit on my fingers. I’ve even had a few bees, too. So far, I’ve only had six hummingbirds to sit on one hand and to drink from the tiny cap. I’d like to see 10 birds sitting all at one time!
Today I watched the males flying from tree to tree. Finally, I had one brave female that came to me and sat down on my trainer, six inches from my face. I named her “Choo Choo” because of the railroad markings on her neck & chest. She was my only visitor.
The birds have been slow in arriving. I only have a few weeks to work with them before they are gone.
Chattyhummer
August 20, 2009
Photographer: John Hamby
