The Best Hummingbird Nectar Recipe has a History!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ต.ค. 2024
- Sheri L. Williamson, internationally known hummingbird expert, ornithologist and author of the Peterson Field Guide to Hummingbirds of North America, is collaborating with Hummingbird Spot to bring you the latest information about all things hummingbird. In her first video she gives us insight into why we make hummingbird nectar the way we do.
If you want to learn more about hummingbirds check out Sheri's book "Peterson Field Guide to Hummingbirds of North America": www.fieldguidet...
Resources:
Nectar as food for birds
researchreposi...
Sugar preferences in hummingbirds
www.jstor.org/...
Hummingbird metabolism unique in burning glucose, fructose equally
www.sciencedai...
Hummingbird health: Pathogens and disease conditions in the family Trochilidae
ucdavis.pure.e...
Adipose energy stores, physical work, and the metabolic syndrome: lessons from hummingbirds
www.ncbi.nlm.n...
Analysis of nectar replacement products and a case of iron toxicosis In hummingbirds
nagonline.net/...
UC Davis Hummingbird Health and Conservation Program
hummingbirds.v...
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#hummingbirds #hummingbirdnectar #besthummingbirdnectar
We are excited to welcome Sheri L. Williamson to the Hummingbird Spot family and we are eager to learn the latest scientific information on hummingbirds from her! Special thanks for the support of the Hummingbird Spot Members and especially the Hummingbird Fanatics: Sheron Tallon, Cynthia Fortner PhD, EJP Campbell, Justine Floresee, wfpa40yt and Patchouli!
Thanks for inviting me to contribute to your channel, Carole! I'm looking forward to sharing more hummingbird science with your viewers!
Science, what a joke.
"This is what we _actually know_ *and* this is _how_ we know it."
Bravo! TH-cam needs more like this.
Absolutely one of the finest and most thorough presentations of hummingbird information I have ever seen. Sheri will be an outstanding asset to Hummingbird Spot and between her and Carole, we have 2 outstanding authorities to learn from.
We thank you!
Yes, absolutely, Niteprowl! I enjoyed, too. Thank you, Sheri!
@@justinefloresee2975 @Niteprowl so glad you both enjoyed it!
Welcome, Sheri, to partnership with Hummingbird Spot! We're very happy to have you and very thankful for bringing your intellectual well of knowledge rich with insights and resources to all of us. I'm looking forward to wonderful parnership!
I feed 4 to 1 in the summer and 3 to 1 in the winter. Another good reason to increase the concentration in the winter is that the sugar acts as an anti-freeze.
correct
I didn't know that. I'm new to the Hummingbird scene 😍
Thank you Carole for bringing the doctor 👨⚕️ in to speak to us.
Hummingbird feeders should come with a link to this excellent video. It covers all the bases quite well. Thanks for sharing it with us.
All for hum, and one four all - Kevin
Hummingbirds rock!
That was wonderful! Thank you Sheri! Thank you Carole!
Absolutely thrilled to see this partnership with Sheri and to hear her tell us more on the history of how we came to use the 1:4 ratio. This is a valuable resource for sharing with others, and I really appreciate the thorough conversation. I highly recommend her book - if you are a hummingbird lover, please do pick it up. I found it very helpful and I look forward to one day purchasing her revised edition.
Me too Wolf, very excited and looking forward to the revised addition.
I just shifted from a vague understanding of what is and isn't appropriate for hummingbird nectar to a clear understanding of it. Now I also know the practice of feeding hummingbirds is at least 200 years old. Thanks for this informative video!
Thank you Carole and Sheri, very very informative! Hope to see you in another video soon Sheri.
Congratulations Carole! How fun and exciting for you and for us too. This was very interesting and we can't wait to see what you 2 will bring us next. Thank you for sharing!
I thoroughly enjoyed the history! Thank you ❤️
Thank you for this fantastic collaboration video. It is such a valuable resource with precise & thorough explanation of this very important topic. Our resident Anna's Hummingbirds have struggled through a recent, uncommon cold snap here in the Puget Sound region of Washington State with several inches of snow and overnight temperatures dipping into the teens. We've kept our feeders clean and thawed at a 1:4 Ratio for our sweet feathered friends. -Jody
Yes! This is the most informative piece of information on the feeding of hummingbirds that I have ever been able to find!! I have been feeding hummers for years and get more and more coming into my yard every year. There are times it turns off very cold and now I know I can go to a 1 to 3 part sugar, water ratio when temps drop to give them the extra energy to get through those chilly nights!! Thank you ever so much for this video!!! A must see!!!👌
Great to see Sheri doing bird education on TH-cam!
Yes, very welcome. Thank you Carole and Sheri for keeping us knowledgeable. School is going to start, and my classroom of inquisitive minds will be tunning in the channel to learn about hummingbird food. Fun!
Thank you 🙏 ladies
This answered so many questions I had. I feed Ann's Hummingbirds it is good to know I can help them through cold days with sweeter nectar.
Great information.
Good information
I live in Vegas. My hummingbirds are happiest when I make their nectar 1:3 in the winter, 1:4 in spring and fall, 1:5 in summer.
Stupendous! What a great, consolidated treasure trove of data and information about hummingbirds! Thank you both!
Nice to know I have been doing it right. Thank You.
Hi Sherri. Thanks for the wonderfully done history.
Glad you enjoyed it, Kelly!
Great information. Thank you.
Thanks for a great discussion of this topic! We are in the Gulf South migration zone and use 3 to 1 here, but I think that the needs quite likely vary based upon geography, migration periods and climate. You have a gift for making this all understandable. You should write a book... ;)
I'm from Louisiana and I assume I'm in the same zone. What's you're recipe
Thank you for this valuable information.
Excellent video. Thank you. I learned so much.
Very useful, thanks!!
This was perfect. Thank you!
This was SO interesting! Thank you!🙂👍
I'm not sure why I'm not seeing any hummingbirds here in NC. I just keep trying but, no birdies coming.?? Thanks for sharing with us all. Happy New Year to you!
They probably migrated to a warmer area. Look for them again in the spring!
Thanks for this amazing video with hummingbird care tips, Carole! And thanks for the nice historical recap of the research for the favorite sugar concentration of hummingbird drinkers, Dr Williamson! I would like to stress the importance of a fact that you presented: the chlorine found in tap water! Even in very small doses, It really makes a huge difference on feeders favoritism by hummingbirds here in Santa Teresa-Brazil. Best Regards!
Glad you enjoyed the video, Piero! High praise indeed!
As for chlorinated water, I've never seen or heard of any evidence of effects on hummingbirds, either positive or negative. An organic chemist and fellow hummingbird fanatic asserted that the reactive chlorine in tap water is instantly denatured when you stir in the sugar, and I haven't run across any recommendations in the zoo literature for the use of unchlorinated or dechlorinated water for feeding captive hummingbirds. (I use filtered water to make my feeder solution, but that's because I live in a mining town where arsenic contamination is an issue). I'm always open to new information, of course, so I'm interested in hearing more about what you've observed and any relevant references in the ornithological literature. You can reach me via my Web site, fieldguidetohummingbirds.com. Thanks again!
I’ve always boiled my hummingbird water for five minutes before adding sugar. Should I not do that? Thanks.
@@ChessieChess there's no benefit, it's just wasted energy. Is there a reason you do it?
Awesome! Love her shirt too! I have the same :) Thanks for producing this video!
Thank you
Excellent.
Great news!!
Love the information
Thank you so much for sharing. I really enjoyed learning!
making hummie nectar as we speak! 🤗
Excellent!
I use 1:3 in winter and spring. And 1:4 in summer and fall. Been feeding the hummers in Cheviot hills for 3 yrs now.
What kind of sugar do you use?
@@minetteyanity5775 white granulated
So informative!
Thankyou. Its Sept 1 and I havent seen all my humming birds today 😢. Im wonding if their migrating, Im in eastern Ore and we are to have a cold wet winter. Can feel the changes already.
Love it, this is great.
this is a really good video ❤️
Thank You! The other people out there with videos are over-sugaring the hummingbirds!
Interesting history for sure! I guess if you wanted too you could make a history of The Hummingbird Feeder. I suppose they became more popular with the invention of plastics but were there Roman hummingbird feeders? Feeders made of tin? Who knows? Just an idea! Give my thanks to Sheri for enlightening us all!
Today, when we research hummingbirds' locations, we learn that they inhabit in the Americas only. However, historically they were in Asia and Europe.
Excellent
I have been experimenting with a sweeter solution (closer to 1 to 3) and the hummingbirds around my yard 'appear' to like it better than a 20% mixture. One thing I have noticed: my birds seem to be more territorial than in many of the videos I have seen; they have a tendency to chase off other hummers and want to feed alone.
Hello I live in ct newington and trying for the frist time to see if can get any hummingbirds to show up would be happy to see some a disabled man I have a small 3 outlet feeder to start again would very grateful for any help and supper grateful to see some coming and yes will make my own nectar to your specs!!!! Please help ASAP God Bless Johnny…
You should have no problem Johnny, key point clean and change the feeders every few days. When you take the feeder in to change it, smell the nectar before dumping to see if it's started to ferment- that will help you tune in on how often it needs to be changed.
And also don't feel like you need to fill the feeder to the top-- until you start getting heavy visits, 1/3 or 1/4 full is enough.
Connecticut! I know the Newington / West Hartford area well 👍
Appreciate it
🎉💖💖💖
I am the administrator of a hummingbird group with over 45,000 members. We promote the 1:4 ratio and will keep doing that. Changing it for the season were in ( ex :migration )might make it complicated for some older members ..when to change it etc. The 1:4 ratio isn't sweet enough to prevent the birds from continuing to pollinate the flowers.
That's great, as long as you don't tell your members (or allow your members to promote the idea) that anything departing from 4:1 will mean instant death to the birds.
Louder for the people in the back: 3:1 is fine too.
I remember reading about a hummingbird breeder in the 50s using a few drops of beef blood added to sugar solution to get them to lay eggs .
People did all kinds of bizarre things to try to keep hummingbirds alive in captivity, none of which apply to feeding wild hummingbirds.
Black Chinned ... he is a bit taller and lankier than my Calliopes and Rufouses, and is a rarer sight in my parts. I don't think I've ever seen an Anna's or Broad-Tailed. They are listed as accidental in northern Idaho.
We only buy raw sugar. Is that bad if we use that instead of white processed sugar?
Yes it is. Raw sugar contains iron which the hummingbirds cannot metabolize. It will eventually kill them of an iron storage disease in their livers.
Do you boil the water or not
No.
Hello dear Hummingbird lovers! I put out a feeder early this year when I saw one lonely HB. I live just north of Atlanta in a house where my mother fed HBs and so many other birds and wildlife. I love doing it too. I have noticed for the last few days that when I wake up in the morning, what had been a reasonably full feeder is completely tapped out. This is the most basic red disk under a plastic jar feeder. It's not leaking. Does anyone have any idea who could be visiting overnight and drinking the nectar? In another few weeks I will have enough visitors to drain 2 feeders in 2 days, but I'm pretty sure I still have just one or 2. Any help would be appreciated.
Squirrels, raccoons, opossums, bears and bats will drain feeders.
I only have seen 1 hummingbird at my feeder so how often should I
replace the nectar, to keep it fresh. Is it daily or weekly? Thank you
for your time.
Daily when it is over 80 degrees. Every other day otherwise.
I live in southeast alaska. We have the Rufus. Do I need a different ratio being in this location?
No
Great video. But please add one that shows you making the solution and how to clean to feeder? Can you use soap and water? Can you mix solution with utensils and bowls that have been used for other things? thank you...any suggestions please...and how to store extra solution?
There's not much to show. You just combine the sugar and water in a clean pitcher or large measuring cup and stir until all the sugar crystals are dissolved. Any unused solution can be stored in a clean, closed container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks (discard the solution if cloudiness, black specks, or other signs of contamination appear).
Carole has a video on cleaning feeders (th-cam.com/video/Mu819OjDBNY/w-d-xo.html). Any feeder that comes apart completely for cleaning can be hand-washed with ordinary dish detergent, hot water, and gentle scrubbing, though I spray with hydrogen peroxide inside and out for disinfection. Some feeders are safe in the top rack of dishwashers, but chlorine bleach and the heat of the drying cycle can damage some plastics.
Cleaning with detergent or soap isn't recommended for feeders with completely closed bases that can't be opened for cleaning. If you have a feeder like this, it's best to just replace it with a design that's easier to clean.
interesting
I’ve gone back and forth on bumping the ratio closer to 1:3 in winter. I know there are authorities that say it’s ok (like at Cornell Univ). However then I read and came across a study about how digestibility is important, especially during winter. What I took from it is, perhaps they can consume more calories (what they especially need in winter) with a higher “turnover” rate - as they spend rest period between feedings waiting for the sugar water to be digested before feeding again. I found an academic study related to how this is so based on observation of Anna’s hummingbirds which are prevalent here. And someone suggested that Anna’s prefers the less sweet flowers anyhow though other species may appreciate a more concentrated sugar water ratio.
Can you use organic cane sugar ?
No. It contains iron.
As I was watching the newest video this afternoon I was standing near my single feeder trying to chase away a bird that thinks it’s all for him. I have no room for another feeder because it would be too close to the other one. I’m in Studio City so I know the others have a place to go.
Cane sugar or processed sugar which is best
As long as it is white. I use White granulated cane sugar.
Should vitamins must be added to the sugar water?? Vitamins specifically formulated for birds
No, nothing but white sugar and water. The nectar of hummingbird-pollinated flowers provides energy and water but almost nothing else. All the other nutrients hummingbirds need come from insects and spiders.
@@sheri.l.williamson Thank you!! There’s a lot of Hummingbirds in my area and I want to provide the best for them. I even put some super soft bunny fur (from my bunnies) for nesting material, it’s a success!!
can i give this formula to sunbird?
Sunbirds can digest sucrose, but sunbird-pollinated flowers produce nectars that are less concentrated than those of hummingbird-pollinated flowers and dominated by fructose and glucose rather than sucrose. A 1:5 or 1:6 ratio is probably better for attracting sunbirds, and even better if you use a blend of sucrose, fructose, and dextrose (the name for glucose when it's used as a food ingredient).
I wash there were a way to force every person who feeds hummingbirds to watch this video at least once through.
I know, right?
I see "commercial" hummingbird food has the 1:4 ratio in the instructions. I also see that there is a red color to the solution when mixed. This product I purchased has the Audubon "seal of approval". So what is the advice on using a red colored solution?
Absolutely not. Please check out a video we did that tells you everything you need to know about red dye in hummingbird food. th-cam.com/video/W0Ml95tZKM0/w-d-xo.html
It would depend on how the red coloring is achieved.
But on the "Audubon" topic--- I contacted them and tried to get them to take their name off a particular hopper feeder that traps bird's heads when the feed level gets low, and they were awful and uninterested.
😄🍹🐤💎
If we keep in cage. Must we give insect?
I'm sad this year. I've had my feeder up a month . Only saw hummingbird 2 times. No such luck this year
I hung a hummingbird feeder outside a very old apartment building,
before any hummingbirds could find it, I guess the sugar attracted roaches bigger than any hummingbird.
I was horrified, packed it, sealed it and threw it in a bin far away.
I’d never heard that mentioned before, and of course it makes sense but no warning at all :-(
I have actually never heard of anyone with a roach problem on a hummingbird feeder. There must be more to the story?
I have maple syrup in the recipe
Not a good idea. Maple syrup is for sapsuckers. Hummingbirds go to the trees to eat the insects attracted by the sap. Not ideal for hummingbirds.
Just below saturation point has them zooming around like hyperactive kids😂😂
...And the high concentration, experts greater osmotic pressure,thus "helping" to prevent infection
Who did the science on 1 to 4? Dennis Demcheck did work in Louisiana showed flowers sugar content to 1 to 3 ratio. A PhD ornithologist from LSU said 1 to 4 science was BAD SCIENCE said vehemently.
Did you watch the video?
I use half and half ratio and have had thousands of hummingbirds for decades.
...*** RATIO **** 4:1 = 4 parts WATER: 1 part SUGAR ....
Because sugar dissolves, there will 4-1/2 CUPS be a TOTAL content in the container when finished.
Put 1 cup sugar into the container, then 4 cups water....mix it until sugar dissolves. 2 CUPS HOT water will help dissolve the sugar more quickly. Then add 2 CUPS COLD....use a thermometer if possible to make sure that the finished product is at room temperature before serving it to your guests.
I don't follow.
MY BIRDS EAT HAMBURGERS
White sugar is not eaten in our house as we consider it a drug...why would it not weaken the birds over generations as it has done to humans?
Because humans are lazy and sedentary and hummingbirds flap their wings at 80-200 times per second and burn the fuel.
@@cdub4693 Are you CEO of Roberts sugar?
@@umayfindyourself9381 😂never heard of it
Gonna watch this video when i have insomnia.
shouldn't they want salt? They can sugar anywhere.
boring plus!