Hummers in Richmond Hill

[dizzy]

I have 1 to 2 male hummers at my feeder all day today. I live at Yonge and Elgin Mill Rd area in Richmond Hill.

Happy Birding.
mike

[Treen_Ajax]

Do you have a garden? Where did you place your feeder?

[dizzy]

Hi, I have it hanging 6 feet off the ground off a metal frame of a gazebo. I have no garden in my backyard except for a lilac bush. I think I have a male hummer who is sticking around for about a week now. It'll preen itself deep in the lilac bush, and whenever a another male approaches the feeder, it will chase it away.

mike

[Treen_Ajax]

Thanks for the reply, Mike. I'm new at trying to attract hummingbirds and I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw one for the first time ever. Do you have other bird feeders close to your hummingbird feeder?

[mr.sharp-photo]

i've had THREE feeders out since April 1. nothing. damn.

[Howieh]

i've had THREE feeders out since April 1. nothing. damn.

I've had my feeder out since late March and didn't see anything until May 4-5 when a couple of males and 1 female showed up a few times. It has been pretty quiet since then but I do get the odd male, usually just before sunset; one showed up twice yesterday (May 17) and because the light was low I just took a video. Hang in there 'cause the females are still returning and I'm still hoping the 'lady' I saw every day from late June (last year) to Sept 6 will show up! Hummers usually 'stoke up' before settling down for the night so watch your feeders around sunset and you should see some action.

No hummers yet this today but I just had a monarch and my first tiger swallowtail of the year fly through my yard!

Btw, I'm in the Bayview/Steeles of north Toronto.

[Treen_Ajax]

Thank you! Do you think the hummers prefer the store bought nectar or homemade nectar?

btw, I'm in Taunton and Salem in Ajax.

[dizzy]

Thanks for the reply, Mike. I'm new at trying to attract hummingbirds and I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw one for the first time ever. Do you have other bird feeders close to your hummingbird feeder?

My wife has a bird bath about 10 feet away from the hummer feeder with some seeds in it to attract local birds. I make my own nectar. This is my second year setting up a hummer feeder. I've never tried store bought nectar to see whether its better than home made. The home made stuff seems to be working, I had a regular female last year from July to Sep. The luck continues this year with a regular male.

mike

[dizzy]

i've had THREE feeders out since April 1. nothing. damn.

Hey Richard, I hope your luck changes soon.  mike

[Howieh]

I came home after 5pm, headed for the back yard and within minutes a female showed up and hung around until after sunset. It looks like the same bird that stayed around all last summer, and unlike the males that have been coming so far this year, she didn't seem to mind when I moved my chair quite close to the feeder! I'm usually up very early and I fully expect her to show up before sunrise tomorrow (I'll be ready with my camera(s) if she does).

As for nectar, I always mix my own and would never consider using the store bought stuff. I also replace the nectar and clean the feeder at least once a week and sometimes more often in really hot weather.

[Howieh]

First visit at 5:53am! the pictures can wait - I'm going back to bed!!

[Treen_Ajax]

First visit at 5:53am! the pictures can wait - I'm going back to bed!!

Thanks for sharing. I'll wake up earlier tomorrow morning and check. No hunkers for me today.

[Howieh]

My regular female has settled into her summer routine; since May 19 she has been returning every few minutes without missing a beat and on one of her visits today she had a beak full of spider web so I suspect she is building a nest somewhere (for the experts out there is it a bit late for nest building?)...and just when I thought things were over for the day I looked out the back window and two females were chasing each other around in near darkness - unbelievable to watch!! No males since May 19...and I finally dragged out the 50D/100-400 combo and took some pictures. My regular female is most cooperative - most of the time she poses, (ok, feeds) at the right flower!

Note to self: please remember to turn off the image stabilizer when using a mono-pod (or tripod)!

[MEGHAN]

Hey Howieh,

Glad to see you'll have another successful year. My males are still around. Early morning and last light are the best times for them, but they do pop up during the day.I usually have them all summer just not as regular as the females. I have a few girls around but nothing crazy yet.
Just to put in my 2 cent.
I also only use my own mix of nectar. 4 parts water to 1 part sugar. I usually make 4 cups at a time. Then store it in the fridge till I need it. I would never think to buy store bought nectar, for me it's just easier to boil 4 cups of water and add 1 cup of sugar.
I would love to see some of your pictures.
I am waiting for all my Hummingbird attracting flowers to start blooming before I get the camera out for them. So for now I just sit and watch them. How many feeders do you have up? I go full overkill and have out 4.
My crazy female is not back yet. I hope she will but you never know. It is such an amazing journey they make. I do hope she returns.

Meghan

[Howieh]

What a crazy day!! we went to 'Rama for the first time in months (fun day - won a bit - for a change!), then home for a quick bite and out for an orchestral concert. In the meantime our A/C died and the hummingbirds are probably the only happy campers because the on/off cycling spooks them big time. We left early this morning but I still had a chance to enjoy some hummer antics before departing; when I looked out (about 7am) she was sitting in the tree above the feeder. After a few seconds she came over to check me out(!) then she flew amongst the weeds for several seconds (I never saw that type of behavior before) before resuming her watch from above the feeder and guess what? another female shows up and they put on an aerial display just for me We got home too late to see anything but the nectar level actually dropped a bit so it must have been a busy day.

I only have one feeder but I would like to put up a second one if I can figure out where to put it.

I haven't downloaded this years images but I have a couple from last year that I will upload if I can figure out how to do it - nothing too great but my non birding friends think they're cool.