Writer of this blog, Janice Scanlan, speaks on Hummingbirds at Brightwater Garden Club, Mon. Sept. 22, 7 pm, Brightwater Clubhouse. No charge. Contact Diane Giltner @ 281.499.0695
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, particularly females and immature males have taken an early migration ride on the recent dips south of the jet stream. Breezes more like September have brought hummers to our gardens and feeders early. They look for red and orange, small flutes containing nectar such as the Hamelia Patens commonly called Hummingbird Bush above, that with proper light and drainage adapts to the Texas Gulf Coast and Zone 9 heat and humidity conditions.
Unlike the male with his Ruby Throat above, female hummingbirds can be deceptively hard to identify. Until recently this wasn't much of an issue because the Ruby-throated were the only regular migratory visitor to Fort Bend County, near the upper Gulf Coast of Texas. Not anymore . . .
Especially early (usually a winter visitor) is the male Rufous Hummingbird pictured above, photographed 8-10-14 at Margaret’s garden sanctuary in Quail Valley.
Once hummers establish a pattern, they can be doggedly persistent in returning to feeders.
Hummingbirds are confined to South, Central and North America.
Most of the hummingbird species live in South America (more than 700 species), with only 28 species in North America (Mexico, US, and Canada). However, research shows a trend of hummers migrating north from the South American rainforests. The major reason seems to be more sources of food.
The Green-Breasted Mango Hummingbird provides an example of this northern movement. This one was photographed by Margaret in Costa Rica (and she has photographed them as far south as Ecuador) has now moved along of East Coast of Mexico . . . and is a fall and winter visitor as far North as the Rockport / Corpus Christi area. Yes, the more exotic plummed are further South.
Bringing more of nature’s jewels to your garden . . .
It pays to advertize . . . and bright red or orange . . . is a big trigger. Think in nature . . . there are fields of small fluted flowers that show up from the air . . . but may be harder to see in the home garden with fewer of one species or trees that obsure them. Any red plant, object or garden art the hummingbirds can see will attract them. Purple is also a color they like, but they will adapt to other nectar sources once they discover your garden is hospitable. Some people even hang red plastic streamers to blow in the wind!
Hummingbirds feeders . . .Hummers will come to feeders alone, but the more plant diversity and other food sources have them staying in your garden longer "working the garden." Keeping the nectar clean and not fermented to alcohol is a must. Nectar is best made with table sugar, as honey and other sugars sources can get moldy very fast. Use one part table sugar to 4 parts of water. Many experts recommend boiling the water first to take out impurities and then dissolve your sugar in the solution. Red on the feeder is enough (and red dye in the nectar is unneeded and possibly harmful). The hummers have likely fed at feeders like yours before!
Make enough nectar solution to refrigerate part of your solution to change often to keep it fresh and appealing. If the nectar looks the least bit cloudy, it's time for a change. Also if hummers aren't drinking, you have another clue.
Cleaning the feeder is important so make sure you buy a feeder easy-to-clean (especially the inside). I soak the feeders in soapy hot water for at least 10 minutes and rinse throughly and well. If I see any mildew, I soak the feeder in one part bleach and 9 parts water, then use the soapy water. Audubon recommends using bleach solution monthly whether you see mildew or not to prevent disease. There are both single feeders and multi-port feeders with perches. All have advantages and disadvantages. Starting small to see if feeding is for you is likely a good beginning.
Hummingbirds cannot walk, but the do like understory trees and bushes or areas they can perch. They and Swifts are flying wonders in the bird world . . . and it does take a lot of nectar as well as insects to fuel them!
Habitat . . . In general, the more organic methods you use in your garden the more appealing it is to hummers. Their source of protein (nectar is for energy) are insects, which they especially like to harvest from spider webs, which is also a source of nest-building materials.
They also like multiple heights of plants and non-geometric "transition edges." They like areas with leaves where they can stay dry during a heavy rain storm so their feathers don't get drenched so they can continue to fly. They do enjoy little water misting stations at bird baths to cool off.
Was it Rufous or Allen's? Perhaps one day enough hummers will come she will know the difference,
but the delight of the experience that her work was paying off was enough!
If your garden is more formal, hummers will come, but not in large numbers nor will they linger and entertain you often for hours in the morning and later afternoon. Margaret Sloan's garden sanctuary is an wonderful example of the garden diversity that birds need by ensuring food, shelter, and water with plants appealing to hummers. Click here to take a peek of her garden.
Janice Scanlan's talk on hummingbirds conveys her stories of how she started small and built on success with practical, common sense ideas that translate to finding ways to attract hummers to a number of kinds of gardens. The bonus is she shows Margaret's photos including some of the exotics from the South.
Booted Racket-tail Hummingbird . . . from Ecuador and surrounds
Photos copyrighted by international birder Margaret Sloan. View her international and national bird pictures by pressing this link.
Other Hummingbird stories in this blog:
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.
See a bird you don't recognize in Fort Bend? Margaret has photographed 150+ bird species just in her suburban Fort Bend,Texas backyard alone. Narrow your initial search by viewing her full photo album of local birds, Birds of Quail Valley by pressing this link. They are organized by types of birds, so if it's a water bird for example, you may find one that helps you narrow your search. Then if you "google in" the name of the bird, you'll get info and all kinds of information and images. Sometimes if a species is remarkably different from adult you may find nothing, contact us and we'll do our best to help.
Want more Hummingbird fun . . . Cornell's All About Birds has some Hummingbird fun featured this month.
Researched and posted by Janice Scanlan.