photography:: this is for the birds

The hummingbirds have been going through 4 full cups of food every 24 hours.

We think we have upwards of 9 living near our house for the summer.

I’m going to miss them when they are gone for the winter.

And not to brag or anything, but I even had a friend from Madagascar make a special point to visit a few days ago.  He wanted to see my amazing collection of hummingbirds up close before he headed home.  We sat on the deck watching them buzz and fight and chirp while catching up on life, as it had been about 3 years since we had seen Tahiana.

Since we have 20 years of hummingbird watching behind us, I thought I would share some tips.

1.) They like fresh food, so I thoroughly clean out and refill every Saturday whether they are finishing it off or not.

2.) I always keep 2 feeders with perches.  Without the perches, they don’t stop and rest.

3.) I hang both feeders about 12 feet apart in the shade.

4.) We have 4 large shrubs and trees within about 30 feet of the feeders.  Plenty of room to duck and cover if we are moving around too much nearby, and they like to nest close to a food source.  We never disturb the nests.

5.)  If you want to make your own hummingbird food:  mix 4 cups filtered water with 1 cup sugar (I just use the filtered water through the fridge dispenser)

I’m no expert, but those are the things I’ve found that consistently work in my world.

Hav a ridiculously amazing day 🙂