Megan's Nature Nook
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This past spring and summer I’ve been noticing a variety of visitors at the hummingbird feeder. Here in Minnesota we only have one species of hummingbird, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird so it is quite easy to notice when there is a non-hummer visitor! Birds, insects, and mammals alike all try to get a taste of the sweet stuff. A common visitor to hummingbird feeders, beside hummers, is Orioles! These beautiful brightly colored birds enjoy the sweet sugar water offered at feeders. Their natural diet includes insects, fruit, and nectar – varying with the seasons. In the summer they eat mainly insects which are protein rich and important while raising their young. In the spring and fall a majority of their diet is nectar and fruits. The sugars in these foods converts into fat which is a much needed energy supply during migration. You’ll most likely see one of these brightly colored feathered friends visiting your hummingbird feeder during the spring or fall. There are special sugar water feeders that have larger perches and openings that make it easier for Orioles to eat from. If you’d like to attract more Orioles to your yard, consider purchasing one of these feeders in addition to your hummingbird feeders. See the Oriole nectar recipe below. Other feathered friends that visit hummingbird feeders are Woodpeckers! This may seem like an interesting visitor since most Woodpeckers thrive on insects, nuts, and seeds but some enjoy the sweet taste of tree sap now and again – making sugar water a tasty treat. Recently I have seen Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers on the hummingbird feeder. Our last flying friends are insects! A variety of insects like butterflies, bees, and wasps frequent hummingbird feeders. Although the butterflies can be beautiful, most people try to deter bees and wasps from there feeders. When looking for a hummingbird feeder try buying one with smaller holes or ones with “bee guards” on them. The bee guards are plastic coverings that have smaller holes that the hummingbirds can easily drink through, but the bees and wasps cannot as easily. Avoid feeders with yellow as bees and wasps are more attracted to the color yellow. If your feeder has yellow accents, such as yellow flowers on the feeder ports, you can try painting them or removing and replacing with another color. Lastly, one of the worst hummingbird feeder visitors is raccoons! They not only end up having a little of your sugar water, but instead end up dumping it and ruining your feeders. Luckily there are some easy ways to stop these visitors from coming. If you can, taking in your feeder at night and putting it back out in the morning can be one of the easiest ways to protect it. If it’s not out, they can’t ravage it. If you aren’t able to take the feeder in every night, find a place that you can hang it from that a raccoon can’t climb to. Some of the best places are under the eaves of a building, on a line that hangs between two trees that won’t support a raccoon, or on a second story deck that they can’t climb to. You have to be a bit creative to keep these smart visitors away. Lastly, if you aren’t able to do either of those, take your feeder down for a few days until the raccoon realizes there is no longer a food source there and moves along; the hummingbirds will be able to find it again soon after you put it back up. Have you seen any of these other visitors at your hummingbird feeder? Next time you walk past your hummingbird feeder it may warrant another look to see if it really is a hummingbirds or one of these other visitors. You never know who you might spot!
Hummingbird Sugar Water Recipe 1 part granulated sugar 4 parts water (1 cup water, 1/4 cup sugar) If you will be using all your sugar water right away, add sugar to water and stir until dissolved. If you won’t be using all the sugar water right away, bring the water to a boil, add sugar, and stir until dissolved. Let cool before filling your feeder. When the mixture is boiled it will last about a week in the refrigerator. Always make sure your feeder is clean and there is no mold growing. Refill your feeder every 3-4 days, more often when there is hot weather as the mixture will spoil quicker. Oriole Sugar Water Recipe 1 part granulated sugar 6 parts water (2 cups water, 1/3 cup granulated sugar) If you will be using all your sugar water right away, add sugar to water and stir until dissolved. If you won’t be using all the sugar water right away, bring the water to a boil, add sugar, and stir until dissolved. Let cool before filling your feeder. When the mixture is boiled it will last about a week in the refrigerator. Always make sure your feeder is clean and there is no mold growing. Refill your feeder every 3-4 days, more often when there is hot weather as the mixture will spoil quicker.
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