I’ve heard comments from a lot of hummingbird lovers out there, asking “Where are my hummingbirds?”  Loyalists, who are used to seeing swarms of hummingbirds at their feeders, feel like they are coming up empty this season.  So I talked to a few expert resources, too see what their opinion was on the lack of hummingbirds.  Their answers led me to believe there is nothing to worry about!

Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University is a terrific reference on all things birding, and they had this to say about the hummingbirds, “As you know, bird populations can fluctuate considerably from year to year.  Only if this trend were to persist on a much wider scale for multiple years would it likely indicate a larger problem for the species.  It is also true that what is happening in one location isn't necessarily indicative for the species overall.”  This is a great sign! 

They further say, “When birds migrate, where they stop is highly dependent on weather patterns.  Because they're in such a hurry to get to their nesting area, if they don't need to stop, they won't.  And that means that sometimes they're not in a particular area.”

We also took this question to Scott Weidensaul, who is an expert of bird migration.  He gave us the following explanation, “Most of the emails I get in June and early July about ‘where are my hummingbirds?’ stem from the females being tied up with incubation and chick-rearing, the usual early summer lull that always makes people panic. They remember the hordes of hummers they had last year (not realizing it was in late summer, after the chicks had fledged and the migration was underway) and compare that with the normal, low-intensity activity at their feeders in early summer and assume the worst.”

So in the end, we’ve concluded that all hope is not lost.  Keep those hummingbird feeders full of the good stuff and your much anticipated visitors will show up.  Feed them… and they will come!

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Ideally a sheltered southeastern exposure location is best for hanging a bird feeder since birds like to feed in the sun and out of the wind. Birds also prefer not to have any obstructions over their feeding area so they can see any predators.

If this is the first time you have a bird feeder in your yard, you may have to wait several weeks for birds to discover it. It may help if you put a shiny pie pan with some seed in it underneath the bird feeder to attract birds flying through your yard. Black oil sunflower seeds are a favorite among most birds. Water is also a natural attractant.

Hang your bird feeder away from trees, bushes, fences or buildings. Squirrels and other predators may climb or jump onto the bird feeder. If you must hang the bird feeder on a tree, keep it at least six feet from the trunk or the tree limbs.

Add a squirrel baffle over the bird feeder to prevent squirrels from climbing down the wire used to hang the bird feeder. If you decide to use a free standing pole, it should be 5' high and 10' from the nearest tree.

Hummingbird feeders should be hung out of direct sunlight, since the sun can spoil the nectar.  Hummingbird feeders should be hung away from windy areas and out of reach of cats.

You may also want to place the hummingbird feeder in and around trumpeting flowers. This will help attract more birds to your hummingbird feeder.

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According to Ian Tizard, a bird specialist in Texas A&M’s College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, our hummingbird numbers are right where they should be this season!

Even though the weather across North America this past winter has been hit by colder than normal temperatures, snow blizzards, and torrential down pours – it obviously has had no affect on us hummingbirds. Tizard claims he has seen nothing to indicate that our numbers are down and many sightings of us have already been reported.

Although, it does make me wonder… since winter appears to have shifted a bit by ending later and later each year, I’m wondering if my hummingbird friends and I have been affected by this lag?

Hummingbirds.net does a wonderful job of tracking us Ruby-Throats via the help of hummingbird enthusiasts. After looking at these maps over the past few years, there does seem to be a very brief delay in the first sightings of our kind, however, it has not affected the numbers of us hummingbirds migrating, which is great news!

Take a look at the most recent sightings of our beautiful species and see for yourself!

… And don’t forget to put out your feeders. When we reach your yard we’ll be hungry!

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