Hummingbird and Hummingbird Feeder FAQs

No. Over the years, it has been determined that adding red food coloring is simply not necessary. Once the hummingbirds find the nectar, they will come back for more as long as it is fresh.

No. Most hummingbird feeders do have some red on them, which is a good idea, but the hummingbirds will find and use nectar from feeders that are not red.

The only way to know for certain is to try. There are 16 different species of hummingbirds found in North America, and most areas of the United States and southern Canada have at least one species, so the chances are that you have some in your area. In addition to hanging feeders, you will also want to plant some showy blooming flowers that are known to attract hummingbirds.

The nectar needs to be changed every 3-4 days or when it appears cloudy, whichever occurs first. Give your feeder a good cleaning each time you change the nectar.

No. It simply isn't necessary, these products are really a rip-off, and there are some who believe that these types of nectar may contain ingredients that may be harmful to hummingbirds and that the companies who sell them should stop. The best recipe is a mixture containing 1 Part Sugar and 4 Parts Water. There is no need to use boiling water as the sugar will dissolve regardless; hot tap water works great.

The oblong feeding port provides for a much better feeding angle for hummingbirds of all sizes and is actually safer for the birds.

If you live in the Southwest part of the United States, you likely have a population of hummingbirds year-round, so to help them out, you can keep your feeders up all year. If you live elsewhere, when your Spring weather breaks, it is time to put them up because the migrating hummingbirds time the return to their breeding grounds to coincide with the flowering of their food plants.

The best areas are relatively open and protected from wind and sun; placing your feeder around flowers is ideal. Keeping your feeder out of the sun will keep the nectar from going bad as quickly.

Bees will be on your hummingbird feeder if they can get to the nectar. They also seem to be attracted more to feeders with yellow parts, so I would avoid feeders that have any yellow on them. If your hummingbird feeder drips or leaks in any way, bees will continue to be a problem. Manufacturers with the best designs have made their hummingbird feeders bee-proof. The HummerMagnet was specifically designed to be bee-proof.

In the Southwest United States, there is no need to take down your hummingbird feeders. In other areas, you should be able to tell when you are no longer seeing any hummingbirds coming to your feeders. You may want to leave a feeder up with fresh nectar for a little while longer to provide important nourishment for any migrating hummingbirds passing through your area. 

Yes, we have found a fantastic bottle brush designed to clean the inside of your bottle and offer it for sale here on our website. Another option is simply to fill your bottle partially with hot tap water and add some uncooked rice and shake vigorously. The rice acts like little scrubbers on the inside of the bottle.

You have three options, and they'll all work to some degree. If you have another location option for your feeder, it is very effective to simply move it, and the hummingbirds will not mind. If you can find the source of the ants, such as around the base of the tree, you might treat them with a pesticide being very cognizant of your hummingbirds. Ant moats are very effective, and the HummerMagnet has a small built-in ant moat that works well in all but the hottest climates, where you may need to purchase a separate ant moat that holds enough water so that it won't evaporate quickly.

There are lots of considerations that go into picking the ideal hummingbird feeder. First and foremost, you want a feeder that will attract lots of hummingbirds!! It should be simple and easy to clean, bee-proof, long-lasting, not leaky or messy, and pretty to look at. Finding this combination is hard and we are a little biased... but the HummerMagnet is the best choice because it includes all of these features.

Hummingbirds love flowers, and if you have lots of flowers, you will eventually get lots of hummingbirds. Lantana is an easy-to-grow, resilient flower that attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators.

They do not suck nectar; they lick it. They do not only eat from red flowers, but they also enjoy many different colored flowers. They do not migrate on the backs of geese.

No. migration is triggered by the changing day length or what is called the photoperiod. Keeping your feeder up will not influence their migration in any way, and maintaining a feeder with fresh nectar will provide important nourishment for any migrating hummingbirds passing through your area.

There can be periods during the season when it seems like your hummingbirds are no longer around or are less prevalent. This generally occurs during a period when flowers are blooming exceptionally strong or during the nesting season. Hummingbirds do prefer flowers and will use them first when they can, and when they are nesting, they spend less time at the feeders as well. Also, as the summer turns to fall and you notice fewer and fewer of the flying jewels, it is because they know that it is time to migrate to warmer climates in the South. Most of the hummers that frequent your gardens and hummingbird feeders fly to Mexico and beyond. Many Ruby-throated fly non-stop over the entire Gulf of Mexico!

The good news is that you have lots of hummingbirds!! However, hummingbirds are very territorial for most of the year, and there is nothing that we can do to stop them from guarding their food source with every ounce of energy they have. The best thing to do is hang additional feeders in order to get the greatest number of hummingbirds to spend time in your yard. If your neighbors are close by, give them a feeder to hang as well, and overall you will have even more birds.

Most of our hummingbirds migrate to Mexico and Central America, as far south as Panama.

We get it, paying for shipping isn't fun. Shipping costs are calculated based on weight and distance and like everything else, costs have risen in the past couple of years. We understand how frustrating it is to have to pay for shipping when ordering something online. Unfortunately as a small business we just don't have the ability to offer free shipping without increasing the prices of our products substantially. We thought about switching to plastic feeder bottles instead of glass so that shipping weights would be reduced and less expensive to ship but that would make our feeders less durable and they wouldn't last as long. So, we will stick with glass bottles that are more expensive to ship so that we can maintain the high quality our loyal customers have come to expect.