How to Get Hummingbirds to Your Hummingbird Feeders

If you've been lucky enough to live during spring in the Northwest, then wherever you go you know how to look for those flashes of bright green and red, to listen for the hovering buzz barely heard over the breeze. What's the best practice for keeping these moveable colors at your feeders year round? Find out below.

Get Prepped Early

Expect the hummingbirds to come back to us here in the Northwest from mid-April to mid-May. Have your hummingbird feeders set up and ready for the return of the birds so they know early on where they can get the goods (this being nectar in the Stokes Select® hummingbird feeder, of course). In Washington you might even get lucky and keep Anna's Hummingbird through the winter.

Here is a starter kit feeder you might use to bring you more hummingbirds.

Double Down on Attraction

Set up your Stokes Select® hummingbird feeders somewhere protected and out of that NW wind that's always close to a gale (at least here in Great Falls). This protected area will help your prospective hummingbirds develop confidence in frequency and safety of feedings. Want to sweeten the pot? Hang your feeders near red tubular flowers that are naturally attractive to hummingbirds.

Keep it Clean

Hummingbirds like clean feeding places. Think of a flower. There is not truly a sticky mess full of ants or dirt (unless something is wrong with the plants), so remember to clean your feeders and use fresh nectar when you're out (keep excess in the fridge). 

Play the Spread

Hummingbirds are competitive and will fight over and protect nectar feeders which could reduce the numbers around your yard. Space your feeders out and let the birds have the room they need to enjoy nectar in peace. 

Here is hummingbird nectar you can use to fill your feeders this year.

You Can't Stop the Roll

"If I leave my feeders out, can I keep the birds all winter?" The short answer? Yes, if you live on a boat and follow the migratory patterns of the birds south. The long answer, "It's complicated." One banding suggests, "That individual birds may follow a set route year after year, often arriving at the same feeder on the same day." That is something to think about maybe the birds around your feeder have become part of the family!

Fear the Beak

Something you may not have known: hummingbirds are a carnivorous species--perhaps a little raptor descendant? Perhaps. The nectar you are feeding them is a carbohydrate supplement that gives them energy to catch and ingest their true food fare: flies.

Want to order the feeder you see above?

So what are the takeaways from this brief intro to life and times of the hummingbird?

One: Prepare your hummingbird feeders with adequate spacing between feeders and supplement your natural hummingbird attractors with fresh, clean nectar.

Two: Enjoy the birds and send us your pictures on Facebook.

Credit for information on hummingbird "best" practices should go out to Stokes Select feeders. Come in and pick yours up soon.