If the embedded video doesn't work you can see it here.
I can't even count the number of birds buzzing around. They sit on the perches, sometimes two at a time, while other birds dive in and poke around trying to angle in for a sip, other birds buzz in and around trying to push others off the perches. It's just crazy.
This is one of three feeders that I have around the garden. I have to refill this one every day, usually at the end of the day so the birds can enjoy their bed time snack. Another less crazy feeding frenzy starts at first light and the feeder is usually empty before noon. The other two feeders are more zealously guarded by other hummers, one of them takes about two days to be emptied and the other feeder only gets half filled and takes about 4 or 5 days to be emptied.
Summer is high time for hummers in my garden, come winter the population decreases, for a number of reasons I suppose but I really can't say why.
I love hummingbirds, but they don't seem to like it here. I'm so sad about that. I've planted things like runner beans for them in the past to try to get them to come, but they never do. We get pigeons, European sparrows, starlings, cardinals and mocking birds on a regular basis. But rarely get the more interesting birds.
ReplyDeleteOh wow, I've never seen so many hummingbirds in one place before. I spotted the first hummingbird in my garden the other day. They are quite rare here so I was really excited. Sure enough, it's been coming back daily to feast on the delphiniums and nicotiana.
ReplyDeleteThat is just incredible. We just put up a feeder about a month ago and had one hummingbird on it quite often for about a week or so, but I haven't seen anything since then. I've been using the 4:1 ratio of water to sugar (which is what I usually see recommended) but I'm thinking that when I first set it up I may have used a higher sugar concentration. What concentration do you use for your feeders?
ReplyDeleteI actually us a less sweet concentration than usual, 5 parts water to 1 part sugar. I had read somewhere that that is closer to the concentration found in flower nectar.
DeleteThanks so much Michelle - I'll try that ratio the next time I change the solution.
DeleteNeat. I hang a couple of feeders on the porch and the water lasts 2-3 weeks. I have seen at most 2 hummers at a time.
ReplyDeleteNice. I had my feeder up and have had no visitors. Maybe I'll try it again.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful sight! I see the odd hummingbird around but have never done anything to attract them ... I used to have bird feeders but I now have a cat that is a voracious hunter. A bird feeder would be a buffet for him, so not an option!
ReplyDeleteHow lucky are you - we don't get humming birds here. They are gorgeous.
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