[Steve C.]

This is a interesting site.....

https://www.hummingbirdcentral.com/index.htm

Their section on Migration information is good.
Also make sure to note their Spring Migration Tracking Map.

Next year if interested you can zero in on the map to your your specific area and keep track of their progress. The spring 2022 Hummingbird Migration Map project began in late January of 2022, and ended on May 19, 2022, as most hummingbirds have reached their northernmost breeding grounds in the Canadian provinces.

During the spring migration northward the birds trickle into the US over extended time, often over many weeks. They don't all leave Mexico and Central America at one time. However when it comes to the fall migration they will leave and move southward in greater numbers. This is why in southern areas areas of the country the feeders can be very active during the fall migration. My video in post #6 shows a good example of this. During the Fall I can have three feeders close together with the traffic. In spring and mid summer I have only one feeder up in that specific location.


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[Formulabruce]

Hummingbirds Only drink sugar water to Fly. The sugar water IS NOT THEIR FOOD although 99% of folks think they are " feeding" .
Hummingbirds are CARNIVORES.
They love mosquito larva, and other MEATY insects.
Those of us with " feeders" are just a
" BAR" for the Hummingbirds...

[Steve C.]

Good point.

Hummingbirds have a very high metabolism and must eat all day long just to survive. They consume about half their body weight in bugs and nectar, feeding every 10-15 minutes and visiting 1,000-2,000 flowers throughout the day. In addition to nectar from flowers and feeders, these birds eat small insects, beetles, ants, aphids, gnats, mosquitoes, and wasp. So, hummingbirds are great to have in your backyard!


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[beemergary]

Live in the woods of mi. Feeder hangs on hanger above deck railing. There's also a huge japanese maple there. Can be 3 ft. from feeder and they will come and like to land in the maple tree. Couple time have more than one at feeder. Sometimes they will dive bomb each other when one is at feeder but never hit another. Have a Pilated wood pecker that will come and look in window. There faster than a speeding bullit.

[dataway]

Had no idea they ate insects ... or anything but nectar. This place is like an adult continuing education forum

[Greg Reid]

I have been feeding and observing them for years. They literally swarm my property and yes, they are very aggressive towards each other. They basically claim the feeder but there's always one that will run the claimant off..lol .. I space my feeders at least 50 ft apart and on different lines of sight from each other.
I have noticed that among my birds there is no dominance of male or female, it's just a matter of which bird is the strongest in an individual confrontation.
I've only once observed them in a prolonged physical fight on the ground. They are vicious.
I have also observed one in the state of torpor. I thought he was dead but when my finger got about a half inch from him he opened his eyes, looked alarmed and flew off.
They are fascinating birds. I have had them hover four or five feet from my face and stare at me right in my eyes. I have had one that landed on the feeder as I was holding it. I also saw one pluck a small gnat out of the air right in front of me and that's when I learned that they do eat insects. They also love a bird bath or water sprinkler in hot weather.

I've been mixing my own Homebrew for years also. As mentioned above. Four parts water to one part sugar. My wife is convinced I'm putting crack in the mixture the way they attack it..lol
One final observation is that years ago I had one fly into my garage. He bumped his head against the ceiling for at least 4 hours and I couldn't figure out how to get him out. Finally, I stuck a broom up near him to see if I could shoo him down towards the door and he simply landed on it. I gently walked towards the door, lowered it and he flew away. I later found that I had accidentally stumbled on the accepted way to get one out of that situation. I learned that otherwise they will literally exhaust themselves and die.

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[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by beemergary

Have a Pilated wood pecker that will come and look in window. There faster than a speeding bullit.

I have a lot of those too. If you have carpenter bees around, look out. Those woodpeckers will absolutely destroy your soffets getting at the larvae!



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[Stuart]

Another childhood memory: My dad's lawn mower had bright red grips on the handle bar, and when I'd go out to mow the lawn hummingbirds would follow me around, trying to feed from those grips.

My parents kept two feeders on opposite sides of the house, one by the living room window and one by the kitchen window. This usually split up the hummingbirds so they wouldn't fight as much, but every so often there would be one that tried claim both of them - he'd buzz back and forth around the house all day trying to scare away his competitors. It must have been a lot of extra work for him.

[Hunter98TA]

I had to put up 4 feeders to stop the fighting, well almost. LOL 2 on the front of the house and 2 on the back. Next to birds of pray, they are my fav. 2 years ago I almost had one feeding from my hand. It takes a while but they can get used to you.

I always mark on the calendar when I first see them. I the past 4 years it is within days from the first sighting. This year was April 22

[Formulabruce]

If you have hanging " upside down" planters with strawberry plants.. well. Your berries will be Swiss cheese.
I find a perfect few, and on one side its been bored to the core lol. Had one fly in garage and kept attacking a shooting target we had on the wall, in the middle, of course. They Will eat or try to eat any berry jello you may have outside and will do this at your table !

[fyrffytr1]

Here's one drinking from my son's hand. It was taken in the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

[Firedup6975]

I see all these ads for hummingbird feeders where like 30 or more hummers visit the feeders daily all getting along sitting side by side I can’t believe it! Mine are very aggressive swoop up and down peeping at one another and zooming all around. One will be keeping watch in a near by tree, and when another comes to the feeder it will swoop in and start a fight for territory. I’ve noticed I only have 3 active hummers this year, not sure why. But I loveeeee them.

[Pontiguy70]

Wow, never seen them wrestle. But there always seems to be one stationed in a nearby bush to chase away any others that go near "his" feeder. They waste a lot of energy chasing each other.

[dataway]

Hehehe ... yeah, seems like a little diplomacy and they could all have their fill and expend a lot less energy. Nature is a cruel mistress be it hummingbirds or humpback whales.

[wheels]

This little female let me get within a foot of her to get a few pics. She'll hoover around your head while you fill up the feeder. I've never seen her land on me but she'll get right next to your ear and you can hear the humming from her wings.

[Hikin Mike]

They can be territorial and very curious. I used to sit by the feeder with my tripod/camera and take photos of them for hours. Many times they'd buzz over my head. Here's a few of my favorites.

Male Blacked-chinned


Male Anna's


Female Anna's

[fyrffytr1]

That male Anna's hummingbird is beautiful. We only get the ruby throated ones here and they are very territorial. This is a female.

[OG68]

There's been a few shows on PBS (Nature) about Hummingbirds a few years ago. Originally from the Andes in South America they were more common in the southern United States 50+ years ago. With global warming they're now being seen in Canada.
Europe and Asia do not have hummingbirds.

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/supe...s-about/14472/

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/humm...oduction/5424/

[Cliff R]

I've also been feeding them for years. We put up two feeders, one at each end of our back porch.

For quite a few years a big male dominated the feeder on the East side of the porch and dive-bombed any other males who tried to drink from it. I know it was the same bird as he used the same limb in a nearby Maple tree to guard his feeder from. He must have lived 5 or 6 years.

Right before they make the return trip South we put another feeder up on the West end of the porch because the smaller one daily.

I've tried a variety of different feeders over the years and settled on one type that just works a LOT better than the others. I'll post a pick of it when we get our phone line and Internet service restored. Been out now over a week since the big storm came thru here and I'm working remote from a laptop.......