Feeding hummingbirds during winter freeze
Monday, December 27, 2021
 |
| Photo by Jan Hansen |
Jan Hansen says "My responsibility is to keep this guy's beverage from freezing."
Christine Southwick discussed this in a previous For The Birds column:
Remember your hummer friends too: In cold weather, full hummingbird feeders don’t freeze above 28°F. Colder than 28F, bring feeders in after dark, and put out again at first light.
 |
| Hummingbird feeder wrapped in non-LED Christmas lights Photo by Jean Hilde |
Anna’s hummingbirds feed well into dusk, and come back at early dawn. They need to fill up to survive winter over-night, and tank up in the morning to replenish their energy levels.
So, when the days are short, and the nights are long, the wild food has been mostly consumed, and insects are scarce.
Heat your bird bath, give your yard birds food, and provide shelter from winter weather, and more of your birds will live to see their next Spring.
Other ideas
One local resident put his hummingbird feeder out on top of an insulated thermos full of boiling water. The thermos was still warm hours later and the nectar was still liquid.
Posts
4 comments:
Thanks for the advice — the little guys are sooo worth it!
actually, birds dont really need us. they manage
I use a mask instead of tape to hold the hand warmer to the bottom of the feeder. The earstraps go around the neck of the feeder. No tape residue, and it's easy to take the warmer off the feeder to shake and re-activate the hand warmer.
We turned a shoe box upside down, wrapped it in foil, poked holes for hanger and droplight and plugged it in. Warm nectar for our peanut friends! Tuo. Co. Sierra Foothills. 31 to 41 Degrees.
Post a Comment