When do you put your hummingbird feeder out? Silly I know but I have never had one before. Any tips on this would be appreciated! Oh and what is your favorite bird book. I am not familiar with types of birds and my kids keep asking...lol
I think it depends on where you live. I did a quick internet search and found a blog that may interest you: http://mihummingbirdguy.blogspot.com/
Ours are out now. We put them out after fear of freeze is over.
I always put ours out right when the weather started warming up. I have found that hanging them in groups about 4-5 feet apart makes for some interesting watching!! lol. They will dive-bomb each other. :P I can't really help you on a book though...
Love Sibley's if you are looking for a field guide. There are even eastern and western version. We bird fairly frequently and have a couple of Sibley's and a National Geographic one. Look at the pictures though in them to decide which book is more for you or at some of the others. Since the one is split it just allows for more details. There is probably one for just your state too. Have fun watching the birds.
A great website with lots of information and you can hear the different songs of the birds too. If you get more interested in birding the website
www.ebird.com is also a lot of fun. It will let you put in the birds you saw and will keep track of them, so you can then see your state, county, country lists etc and how many you saw when.
Enjoy the show the birds put on at your feeders and have fun learning about all the different types. I'm finally learning my sparrows, but shorebirds get me every time.
mine are out too. I usually put up the first part of April. My kids love watching them!
Get an Audobon Field Guide for your region; your bookstore will have it. I love ours and we've spent some lovely cozy moments over the years, looking through this great book with kids.
We keep them out year round (and it gets used year round, but we're also on the migratory path... when "ours" go south, the ones from up in Canada & Alaska come on down). When it freezes (if I'm on my a-game) I bring it in at night. I'm rarely on my A-game.
I have always put my hummingbird feeder out in mid April...haven't seen a hummer yet. They are really late this year.One little tip about the food. I make my own and they just love it. 3 cups of boiling water to 1 cup of sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and keep in fridge. They like it just as much as the expensive red stuff you get at the store. I keep one "tube" feeder with thistle in it that attracts all the colorful finches, a regular feeder that I put safflower seed in that attracts cardinals and I keep one of those compacted seed/fruit thingers that attracts the woodpeckers. It's a nice variety. I have the National Geographic field guide to North American birds. A couple of years ago I bought the pole kit at Wild Birds Unlimited. It comes with the pole and 2 hooks.. I like it because you can add on to it. Since then I have added another hook, a squirrel baffle (necessity) and a cup that I sometimes put some fruit in. We have had alot of fun wth it. My grandchildren like mine so much I got a feeder for them too. Have fun!
Put your Hummingbird feeder out now. It needs to be out when they first arrive. They will continue to come to it. Mines out, no birds yet! We ususally get visits from them daily.
I agree that it is best if you put out 3 or 4 feeders in different areas of your yard. Hummingbirds are quite territorial, and they will "fight" over them and try to run off "intruders". But, they also tend to return every year to the same places. :)
Mother's day weekend has been the "rule of thumb" I learned.
I don't put out a hummingbird feeder, but I have a good friend who is stalked by her hummingbirds when they're ready for their feeders to be filled. They will fly around to the window nearest where she is working and hover there pointedly until she puts the food out. She's even had one come and hover by her ear while she was out in her garden. They're very persistent! :D And they do come back year after year. Just be aware, they'll be expecting it once you get started, but they're really neat to watch (we've always enjoyed watching hers fly around). Have fun!
You may be in luck....today http://www.hummingbirds.net/map.html crossed my path.....first sightings in your area were this week. Get them out now.
Field guide for your area is a must, if you have kiddos that love nature and out side stuff..like birds. My BIL gave my oldest one before they moved to Alaska. Right now our favorite thing to do is watch squirrels. I can tell you almost anything!!
As for putting out the feeder, I think anytime now would work. We keep ours out year round. I never noticed them stop coming even through the winter. They were not hummingbirds, but still we had birds every morning.
Not a silly question:)
Hummers are a favorite topic, so don't worry about offending me on this subject! Nice change!
You're in Midland, I live in South Lyon, down between Brighton and Ann Arbor. I generally put my feeder out beginning of May. As it's been chilly lately, I might wait till MID-May.
Try to get a feeder that's red on top (holding the food) so that you can use the clear food, which is better for them. Having perches on the feeder helps that they'll sit a bit and feed. Every couple of weeks you should change the food and clean the feeder.
We only get the Ruby Throated Hummingbird here in Michigan. But once they discover your feeder, you'll usually have return 'guests'.
I don't think I have any favorite bird book. I have a common one on Eastern birds, which would cover Michigan. I have a couple of hummingbird books too. And dozens of hummingbird collector plates! Yeahhhh they're my favorite!
O and if you put an Oriole feeder out, Hummers like that food too. The two birds will try to go for the others'. But hummers are so funny sometimes! Chase each other away and 'cheep' at them angrily! But I just love 'em!
If you get the clear food, you can add some strawberry extract to it. It's a favorite!
