While thinking about it just now, I thought I'd post a little info I try to spread around at this time of year.
One year I became concerned over the standard white-sugar and water nectar mix that most people suggest for hummingbirds. There's like no real nutritional value in that. So I set out to do a little test. Using identical feeders, 4 of them, I filled them up with various solutions of white, light-brown, and dark-brown sugar -- brown sugars retaining more of the natural plant nutrients in them. (Do NOT use honey, it can cause a type of fungal infection in their digestive tracts that can be fatal.) Here's what I found.
White sugar nectar, they liked the LEAST.
Dark brown nectar, they liked the best. But it fermented so fast it made keeping the feeders filled with fresh nectar a full time chore. It could ferment in less than 3 hours on a warm day.
Light brown sugar worked the best, and they still enjoyed it a lot, but it too tended to ferment rather fast.
For nutritional and convenience balance I finally settled on a mix of:
2-3 parts Light Brown Sugar, 1 Part White Sugar. In nectar proportions of 1 part sugars to 3 to 5 parts water. (If you live in a very warm climate and find it fermenting too fast, go ahead and use less brown sugar in the ratio).
No food-coloring in the nectar please, it's not good for them. The red and yellow of the feeder is more than enough to let them know where "McNectar" is open for business.
They like a thicker nectar (1:3 ratio) on cold and damp/wet weather conditions. And a thin nectar (up to 1:5 ratio) on dry hot days. If you notice your hummers not showing up during certain weather conditions, most likely it's due to using a ratio they're not fond of for those temps so they head out looking for plants that are doing the right ratio for them naturally.
One point to think about here. Out of all the mixtures I tried, they BY FAR enjoyed fermented dark-brown sugar nectar THE best! So, every now and then I'll put some out and let it ferment so they can enjoy a nice buzz (pun intended.
One warning: There's nothing more dangerous than standing out in a yard of 40 drunk hummingbirds dive-bombing your bright colored shirt at 40 m.p.h. I've had visitors run in the house afraid for their lives. Those sharp little beaks coming at you with drunk drivers behind the stearing wheel can be unnerving.
I passed along these findings to a couple small-animal departments of universities, whether they help to spread the word or not I don't know, but they were grateful for the updated info.
p.s. If you live rural, and there are farmers/ranchers in the area that have electric fences, please ask them to spray-paint their bright yellow and red electric-fence insulators a dull gray or brown color. Brightly colored electric-fence insulators are the #1 cause of death of hummingbirds. Offer to do it for them if they'll let you.
Happy birding!
One year I became concerned over the standard white-sugar and water nectar mix that most people suggest for hummingbirds. There's like no real nutritional value in that. So I set out to do a little test. Using identical feeders, 4 of them, I filled them up with various solutions of white, light-brown, and dark-brown sugar -- brown sugars retaining more of the natural plant nutrients in them. (Do NOT use honey, it can cause a type of fungal infection in their digestive tracts that can be fatal.) Here's what I found.
White sugar nectar, they liked the LEAST.
Dark brown nectar, they liked the best. But it fermented so fast it made keeping the feeders filled with fresh nectar a full time chore. It could ferment in less than 3 hours on a warm day.
Light brown sugar worked the best, and they still enjoyed it a lot, but it too tended to ferment rather fast.
For nutritional and convenience balance I finally settled on a mix of:
2-3 parts Light Brown Sugar, 1 Part White Sugar. In nectar proportions of 1 part sugars to 3 to 5 parts water. (If you live in a very warm climate and find it fermenting too fast, go ahead and use less brown sugar in the ratio).
No food-coloring in the nectar please, it's not good for them. The red and yellow of the feeder is more than enough to let them know where "McNectar" is open for business.
They like a thicker nectar (1:3 ratio) on cold and damp/wet weather conditions. And a thin nectar (up to 1:5 ratio) on dry hot days. If you notice your hummers not showing up during certain weather conditions, most likely it's due to using a ratio they're not fond of for those temps so they head out looking for plants that are doing the right ratio for them naturally.
One point to think about here. Out of all the mixtures I tried, they BY FAR enjoyed fermented dark-brown sugar nectar THE best! So, every now and then I'll put some out and let it ferment so they can enjoy a nice buzz (pun intended.
One warning: There's nothing more dangerous than standing out in a yard of 40 drunk hummingbirds dive-bombing your bright colored shirt at 40 m.p.h. I've had visitors run in the house afraid for their lives. Those sharp little beaks coming at you with drunk drivers behind the stearing wheel can be unnerving.I passed along these findings to a couple small-animal departments of universities, whether they help to spread the word or not I don't know, but they were grateful for the updated info.
p.s. If you live rural, and there are farmers/ranchers in the area that have electric fences, please ask them to spray-paint their bright yellow and red electric-fence insulators a dull gray or brown color. Brightly colored electric-fence insulators are the #1 cause of death of hummingbirds. Offer to do it for them if they'll let you.
Happy birding!
