It's hummingbird time!

[Louise Chambers]

From the minute our martins leave, many of us look forward to hummingbird migration - and that time is almost here!

Most of the summer, our hummer feeders are drained by golden-fronted woodpeckers, but now more hummers are starting to arrive. In 2-3 weeks, numbers should peak. With the drought in so many areas, I bet hummingbirds will visit feeders more than they would in a non-drought year.

[Matt F.]

I love that last photo of the woodpecker.
He/she has a look like they just got busted.....

[DornCounty]

Here is a photo of the hummers at my house about 2 weeks ago.

5 on the feeder at once.



Pretty rare even during migration to get 5, as they typically fight. The drought in my area is as bad as anyone has ever seen it since the dust bowl days.

Numbers have declined steadily since then, but I still have one or two hitting it most of the day.

[trisha]

Louise, how do you feed the orioles? cut open oranges and set out??? I so hoped to see some last year, but did not.

[Louise Chambers]

They were drinking from hummer feeders too - we put out an oriole feeder but they did not care for it especially. So, halved oranges, in suet cages worked well. dishes of watered down grape jelly were not as popular as orange halves. jelly bowls had to go in second bowl with water, so moat would keep ants out. had to take most of it in at night or possums would get it, so for us, oranges in suet cages worked best.

Matt, our woodpeckers are spoiled rotten, just like the martins when they are here. Woodpeckers, shrikes and mockers get giant mealworms on daily basis.

[Louise Chambers]

The Rockport/Fulton event is coming soon:

http://www.rockporthummingbird.com/

[Peggy Riley]

I just spotted a male Baltimore Oriole on my bird bath! Usually don't see them here but do have the Bullock Orioles. Just beautiful!!

Also had two Rufus hummers for 2 days last week. I've only seen one here before, also in mid August.

I would so like to go to the coast but I have 6 dogs and that makes it really hard to leave home!

[Louise Chambers]

I hear you, Peggy! Isn't it nice we can all get lots of hummer visitors at home, too? these were my two fave photos from last year.

[Peggy Riley]

Such great photos! All the little Black-chins are gone but I have loads of Ruby's coming around. They will be gone the first week of Oct.

[Bob Buskas]

Louise, our Ruby throat Hummers are on their way to your house now, we had more than ever this year at our house. I keep 3 feeders up all summer and ad a fourth in late July and they empty them every few days. By late August they have all left. We also feed the Orials all summer , two pair raise babies here and they bring them to the Orial feeders , then I add Grape jelly and the Youngsters love it! Sad now as they are all gone, wish I lived on a migratory path, would spoil them all just as you do.

[Don Troha]

Louise, there are way too many un-eaten leaves on that milkweed in the woodpecker photo. Hope you have Monarchs there.
Rockport is a fantastic place to experience hummingbirds during fall migration! Wish I was going. Got hummers here though! Some shots from this week:

[Mike1624]

Great observation, Don. We've had a banner Monarch year here. All of my milkweed is eaten and we've hatched over 100 Monarchs in the past 10 days.
I've enlisted some neighborhood help to get more milkweed planted for next year. After the PM's leave, the Monarch project becomes our primary interest.

[DornCounty]

mike is there more information on the monarch? I have milk weed all over my pasture, see very few of them. Folks seem to blame it on the gentic egineered corn.

[Mike1624]

There is a website, somewhat similar to this forum, called Monarch Watch that has a ton of information on care and feeding (and banding) of Monarchs. When we built this house here, four years ago, we never saw Monarchs. Since I have a wet area, the marsh or swamp milkweed has done really well and the common milkweed does well in the front yard. I'm currently raising 5 kinds of the milkweeds and a number of popular nectar plants for feeding them after they hatch. It's been a banner year.
Louise, I apologize for hijacking your hummingbird thread:)

[Bulldog1]

The hummers went crazy:

http://s53.photobucket.com/albums/g80/h ... G_0495.mp4

[Peggy Riley]

Aren't they amazing little guys! Great video!

[Louise Chambers]

Mike, the butterflies are welcome here too :-) I enjoy raising all types of plants for butterflies and hummingbirds. Native milkweeds are scarce in TX, but the tropical milkweed in the woodpecker photo does pretty well here. Waiting for fall monarchs to come lay a lot of eggs. My fennel plant hosted a bunch of black swallowtails and gulf fritillarys love the passion vine.

Great video, Bulldog!

[Dave Duit]

If you see a hummer on the grpound in the morning it means they may be still trying to warm up, they are in a stupor. They might appear dead. All you need to do is hold it in your hand and let your body warmth get the hummer going.

[Bob Buskas]

We had a Monarch visit my Mugo pine this Summer in June, first one I can ever remember. Lots of sitings in central Alberta this year, the severe 3 day strong winds from the mid west blew them up we are told, usually they only visit southern Alberta. Hope to see some again they are so big and colorful.

[Trishy]

Louise,

Where did you get those big hummingbird feeders? My sister has 3 glass bottled feeders in the back, and up until about a week ago, they were getting emptied daily. There is also a feeder in front, an oriole feeder, and a small window feeder. At one point I was filling the window feeder twice a day, but it only holds a cup.

Great pictures, by the way. Thanks for posting them.