It's Time To Welcome Hummingbirds

It’s time to put out your hummingbird feeders! These sweet little birds have been spotted in and around various locations on Long Island.

One friend reported they were flying feverishly about at the Peconic River Herb Garden in Riverhead the other day. Though they winter in the tropics, hummingbirds, to our joy, nest in the Northeast in the summer.

Here are some fun facts about these precious little birds: Hummingbirds are native to the Americas. They are known for their needle-like bills and their extraordinary flying abilities. They fly forward, backward and upside down and are among the smallest birds in the world, weighing two to 20 grams and measuring three to five inches. Their lifespan is three to five years. The hummingbird’s name comes from the humming sound generated from the rapid flapping of its wings. They have no sense of smell, which should make you wonder how they identify nectar in flowers.

Hummingbirds primarily locate feeders and nectar using their strong sense of vision and taste. They are attracted to the bright red color of many feeders and flowers. If you wore something red in the garden chances are one might alight on your shoulder or at least fly curiously around you. Their sensitive taste buds help them identify the sugar content of the nectar and determine if it’s a good food source. They can tell the difference between sugar concentrations, especially among flowers, and will focus on feeding in the area with the higher sugar content. When hummingbirds sleep, they enter a state of being called torpor, where their metabolism slows down. This is something like hibernation and allows them to conserve energy. They do not sleep during the day. Hummingbirds can associate certain people as a food source, especially if that person is filling the bird feeder regularly.

If you are already the proud owner of at least one hummingbird feeder, please be sure to clean your feeder before putting it out in your favorite location. My family and I always clean our bird houses as we prepare for our feathered friends’ spring migration. It is important to clean the hummingbird feeders regularly. The nectar can spoil quickly, which then becomes harmful to the hummingbird. You might want to consider having two hummingbird feeders so you can rotate them out as you clean them. We recommend prepping a batch of nectar in advance (four parts water to one part sugar), then storing it in your refrigerator. Please note, never use red dye. It is very harmful to the birds.

The association between bird and people is beautifully illustrated in a documentary called “Every Little Thing.” The story is about Terry Masear, a Los Angeles-based author and wildlife rehabilitator. She is also the founder of the Los Angeles Hummingbird Rescue, a nonprofit located at her home, where she dedicates her life to nursing these delicate birds, helping them recover after illness, accidents or blatant disregard by humans.

I mention this documentary not just because of its obvious illustration of the life and death of a hummingbird but as a portrait of an individual who experiences healing, after the death of her husband (who helped her care for the hummingbirds) and her own personal childhood trauma, though the care of the hummingbirds and their habitat.

The simple act of putting out a bird feeder, maintaining it and incorporating it with whatever form of a natural landscape you chose to provide is a sobering reminder of another way we can keep mind, body and spirit healthy and whole. And it’s a lot of fun to be surprised by their arrival!

Deborah Disston is the chair of the Westhampton Garden Club Butterfly Effect Project Committee.

Plants for Attracting Hummingbirds

Attract hummingbirds with flowers rich in nectar, with bright colors, tubular shapes and continuous blooming. Use native plants and avoid pesticides. Some choices are:

Trumpet vine
Columbine
Bee balm
Lantana
Fuschia
Honeysuckle