Categories
Hummingbird Food

Bugs Provide Protein for Hummingbirds

Apart from nectar, a hummingbird’s diet must also contain protein in it, as a hummingbird will die without it. Approximately 10% of a hummingbird’s diet is protein. A hummingbird can gain the necessary protein through the following: small arthropods such as gnats, spiders, mosquitoes, aphids, caterpillars, and insect eggs.

I wish to provide a brief word of caution here. It is vitally important that pesticides not be used whenever hummingbirds are around. Let your hummingbirds act as a natural exterminator for you by eating the bugs. Also, if a hummingbird eats insects with pesticide on them, the pesticide can make the hummingbirds violently ill or it may even cause the hummingbirds to die.

If you wish to do so, it is even possible for you to grow the bugs on which your hummingbirds can feed by doing the following:

Get any large, empty, clean plastic bucket that has a lid and punch a bunch of really tiny holes in the lid. If your container does not have a lid then you can use a piece of fabric that has been tightly secured as the top of the container.

Place the banana peels of one or two bananas in the bottom of the container with the lid off. After a day or two you will begin to see fruit flies around the fruit.

Now put the lid or the fabric on the top of the container, so that in time the bugs will start to breed, thus making more bugs. It is important that the bucket or container is not placed in direct sunlight.

Each day, at the same time of day, go to where your hummingbirds are and bring out the bucket. Take the top off the bucket very quickly to let out a few bugs and put the top right back on. The hummingbirds will soon begin to associate the bucket as being an easy source of protein.

If every few days you continue to add another old banana or apple in the bucket you will ensure that the bugs will continue to breed and thus there will be a continued source of protein for the hummingbirds.

I personally have never tried to grow bugs on which to provide the hummingbirds a source of protein, but I have read that it is possible if you should wish to do so. It seems like it would be too much extra trouble, but if you are in to doing things in a more natural manner this might be of interest to you. If you should try this, please let us know how it works.

Categories
Hummingbird Feeders Hummingbird Food Hummingbird Videos

How to Attract Hummingbirds to Your Yard

If you are a person who has always wanted a wide variety of tips on how to successfully attract hummingbirds to your yard, this video offers you some step by step tips to help you do so. These tips are easy to understand and follow, so you do not need any prior knowledge of hummingbirds to be able to use them successfully. Happy hummingbird watching everyone!

Categories
Dear Mom Hummingbirds

The Rapid Nature of a Hummingbird’s Wings

The beat of a hummingbird’s wing is undetectable to the human eye, because it occurs at such a rapid rate that it is appears to be nothing but a blur. The rapid nature of the hummingbird’s wing beats is what gives the hummingbird its name due to the humming sound that the wings make as they beat. The exact rate at which this occurs will depend on the direction of flight and air conditions, but the normal rate at which this occurs is between 50 and 200 beats per second.

Do you find that as astonishing as I do? It is this kind of information that never ceases to amaze and fascinate me. This is also the kind of unique information that my mom would have enjoyed discovering about hummingbirds. Since she is no longer living, I will take this opportunity to share it with all the readers of this blog.

Categories
Hummingbird Feeders Hummingbird Food

Reminders About Hummingbird Feeders and Food

Hummingbird feeders are one way to attract hummingbirds to your yard. The use of a feeder requires proper maintenance and cares with it a great deal of responsibility. This post will provide some important reminders concerning hummingbird feeders and homemade hummingbird food.

A hummingbird feeder should not be placed in direct sunlight, as this causes the sugar solution to spoil rapidly. Also, a plastic feeder that is exposed to direct sunlight will ware out more quickly because the prolonged exposure will cause the plastic to crack eventually.

Be sure to place the hummingbird feeder high enough on a branch so that squirrels and other predators cannot feed from it

Use only a mixture of sugar and water to feed the hummingbirds. The recipe is 1 part water to 4 parts water. This blend is very close to the sugar concentration which is found on many flowers which are known to attract hummingbirds.

Nothing other then white table sugar should be used to make homemade nectar solution. Never use honey, molasses or any other artificial sweeteners to feed hummingbirds. Though they eat small insects for protein, hummingbirds also rely heavily on flower and prepared nectar for their energy needs.

Categories
Hummingbird Food

Attracting Hummingbirds With the Star Flower or Star Cluster

The star flower or star cluster is a flower which is known to successfully attract hummingbirds. This post will tell you about this flower and help you understand why you would want to consider using it in your yard to attract the hummingbirds

The star flower or star cluster is available in a wide variety of colors including lavender, white; multiple shades multiple shades of pink, and even red. You can also get this plant in full-size and dwarf varieties, so whichever variety you choose is a personal decision.

When you are choosing a flower to put in your yard to entice the hummingbirds why not get one which has multiple assets. These are some that I would look for when choosing a flower. I would want it to bloom profusely year-round, grow without needing much care, attract wildlife, work well as a cut flower and have a wonderful fragrance. The star flower or star cluster satisfies all my personal preferences except for its lack of fragrance.

You will want to plant the star flower or star cluster in loamy, moderately moist soil. It will then grow very quickly and have an abundance of blooms in a single summer. Cut blooms can be used in flower arrangements. .

To propagate the star flower or star cluster all you will need to do is the following. Trim the bloom and most of the leaves off a soft-stemmed shoot and dip the stem in rooting formula before pressing it into potting soil. Then it will need to be kept in a shady, moist location. This will cause the cutting to develop roots which are deep and strong enough to sustain the plant on its own.

This plant often seems to act like a magnet for attracting hummingbirds. Why not consider adding this plant to your landscape? You will be glad you did and so will the hummingbirds that you wish to attract.

If you are not sure that the star flower or star cluster can be grown where you live, you will then want to consult your local plant nursery for further information. If you have any additional questions regarding this plant they will also be able to provide you with the answers you seek.