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Hummingbirders?

Have you ever heard a rabbit screech when trapped? They actually make a very loud scream, believe it or not. My grandfather claimed you could call in coyotes or foxes by imitating the screech of a rabbit by stretching the neck of a balloon and making it screech. Said a fox or coyote in the area will come by and see whats up. I've tried it a few times on my deck because we have some coyotes around, but no luck. Might be another thing to try on one of those winter nights and see if you can call one in.

my neighbor, huge redneck, lives to kill shit. He has a distress call he has claimed he’s called in coyotes with. When we have tried it multiple times , not a damn thing. It is from the 80s I’m sure and complete POS, like everything he owns. Just sounds like screeching.

I’m gonna call in crows with this app with him on a Bluetooth speaker and he’s gonna shit himself.
 
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Have you ever heard a rabbit screech when trapped? They actually make a very loud scream, believe it or not. My grandfather claimed you could call in coyotes or foxes by imitating the screech of a rabbit by stretching the neck of a balloon and making it screech. Said a fox or coyote in the area will come by and see whats up. I've tried it a few times on my deck because we have some coyotes around, but no luck. Might be another thing to try on one of those winter nights and see if you can call one in.
I’m in a birdwatching group and one of the guys (a recently retired IU biology prof) does a screech owl sound with his throat that agitates other birds such that it draws them in closer for better viewing. We’ve also used a phone app of a Sora rail in a wetland area and occasionally will get these shy birds to answer the call.
 
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Distressed rabbit calls are great for coyotes, but if you're not in a ground blind of some sort or at least in camo, they'll see you before you see them. They'll usually circle and come in from the downwind side and bust you anyway though.

Back to hummingbirds-
Things have slowed down and we're not seeing as many now. There's usually a lull before the permanent residents set up shop, but it still surprises us ever time.
 
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Distressed rabbit calls are great for coyotes, but if you're not in a ground blind of some sort or at least in camo, they'll see you before you see them. They'll usually circle and come in from the downwind side and bust you anyway though.

Back to hummingbirds-
Things have slowed down and we're not seeing as many now. There's usually a lull before the permanent residents set up shop, but it still surprises us ever time.
You always hear about "scouts" being the first visitors and they often aren't as reliable about returning to a feeder. I assume many are continuing their migration and just passing through. I have a neighbor that's pretty knowledgeable on such things. I've not tried verifying it, but he said almost all of the early visitors are males and the females arrive later. I've been watching my feeders and while most of the visitors so far are males, I definitely have females visiting too. My guess is that once you start seeing females visiting, they'll fall in to a more regular pattern. I'm farther south down here around Charlotte, but I am getting visits about every 5 minutes right now.
 
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I'm sure the ones we've seen in the last couple of weeks were the edge of the migration and they've since pushed on. Weather has been weird this spring and everything seems to be a little behind compared to the past few years.

1 every five minutes bodes well for busy feeders this year. We've had seasons when we first moved into this house where 1 every 5 minutes would have been peak visits.
 
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I’m in a birdwatching group and one of the guys (a recently retired IU biology prof) does a screech owl sound with his throat that agitates other birds such that it draws them in closer for better viewing. We’ve also used a phone app of a Sora rail in a wetland area and occasionally will get these shy birds to answer the call.
Well, that may explain why I've not seen any coyotes. I just tried sitting still on my deck. I don't think I've tried it at my new house, but might have better luck as the deck in the back is elevated and better concealed and there's a distinct tree line across the street so it would be easier to spot if one stepped out. Of course if they sit back in the tree line and observe, I'll never see them. Wish I had some thermal imaging binoculars!
 
I'm sure the ones we've seen in the last couple of weeks were the edge of the migration and they've since pushed on. Weather has been weird this spring and everything seems to be a little behind compared to the past few years.

1 every five minutes bodes well for busy feeders this year. We've had seasons when we first moved into this house where 1 every 5 minutes would have been peak visits.
yeah, I really want to amp up the # of birds we get. I have had great success drawing them, but often 1 will set up camp nearby and run others off, which is why I bought feeders with a few more feeding ports and added 2 feeders, plus encouraging neighbors. It sounds like theres a good chance if you can get them returning year to year, they might get a little more familiar with each other and maybe not have as much territoriality.
 
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yeah, I really want to amp up the # of birds we get. I have had great success drawing them, but often 1 will set up camp nearby and run others off, which is why I bought feeders with a few more feeding ports and added 2 feeders, plus encouraging neighbors. It sounds like theres a good chance if you can get them returning year to year, they might get a little more familiar with each other and maybe not have as much territoriality.
Good luck on that. They are very territorial and will fight to defend their food sources. The only way to change that is to have more feeders so there is not as much competition. Last year I put up 28 feeders and still watched them fight over the feeders. It is nothing to watch one hummer defend 2 or 3 feeders.
 
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Good luck on that. They are very territorial and will fight to defend their food sources. The only way to change that is to have more feeders so there is not as much competition. Last year I put up 28 feeders and still watched them fight over the feeders. It is nothing to watch one hummer defend 2 or 3 feeders.
Have you been out west and observed hummingbirds? I feel like they are not as territorial out there and allow more birds to be on the same feeder. Watch that first video link I posted and maybe you'll see what I mean, but I don't feel like they fight as much. I watched a video that lady posted and she seemed to be saying that generations of birds will return and she feels that lessens aggression/territoriality. But I've always felt the hummers out west get along better and don't fight as much as the ruby throats. You haven't noticed that since you put feeders up every year that they fight less over time? Apparently the same birds often return to the same areas.
 
Have you been out west and observed hummingbirds? I feel like they are not as territorial out there and allow more birds to be on the same feeder. Watch that first video link I posted and maybe you'll see what I mean, but I don't feel like they fight as much. I watched a video that lady posted and she seemed to be saying that generations of birds will return and she feels that lessens aggression/territoriality. But I've always felt the hummers out west get along better and don't fight as much as the ruby throats. You haven't noticed that since you put feeders up every year that they fight less over time? Apparently the same birds often return to the same areas.
True. You have to wonder if the Rufous and Anna’s hummers have a different - personality - than the ruby throated. When we go to Montana to see our kids I did notice that they weren’t as aggressive. They had just two feeders up the last time we were there and I do remember my wife commenting about that.
 
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Damnit, I know what it is: the hummingbirds are probably flying into the wall Trump built when they return from Mexico. And, why the heck are we allowing hummingbirds to fly in undocumented from Mexico? The Mexican hummingbird gangs might be killing off the other hummers! We need a net! Stop those Monarchs too!
Fantastic. Love it. Usually by now I’m putting out a gallon or so a week. Right now it’s about a quart to two a week. Last year the majority didn’t arrive till the end of June. Hard telling what will happen this year.
 
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Fantastic. Love it. Usually by now I’m putting out a gallon or so a week. Right now it’s about a quart to two a week. Last year the majority didn’t arrive till the end of June. Hard telling what will happen this year.
I'm happy with the numbers at my feeders. I went from 1 to 4. I added one that suction cups to the kitchen window, but have yet to see one visit it. Hoping to get some close up pics from it.

I'm pretty happy with my #s so far. I'd say between the 3 main feeders I have them visiting about every 2 minutes now. I also added a bare branch for them to perch on and the males especially like to use it to watch over the feeders and occassionally swoop in on an unsuspecting feeder. I've had several instances of 2 simultaneous feeding on different feeders and once where 2 shared the same feeder. Doesn't seem to me that they are as territorial right now with more feeders, but that may be yet to come and it's just early in the season. I could sit there all day I think and watch those little hummers. What guy doesn't like a hummer?
 
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I'm happy with the numbers at my feeders. I went from 1 to 4. I added one that suction cups to the kitchen window, but have yet to see one visit it. Hoping to get some close up pics from it.

I'm pretty happy with my #s so far. I'd say between the 3 main feeders I have them visiting about every 2 minutes now. I also added a bare branch for them to perch on and the males especially like to use it to watch over the feeders and occassionally swoop in on an unsuspecting feeder. I've had several instances of 2 simultaneous feeding on different feeders and once where 2 shared the same feeder. Doesn't seem to me that they are as territorial right now with more feeders, but that may be yet to come and it's just early in the season. I could sit there all day I think and watch those little hummers. What guy doesn't like a hummer?
I’d like to see a few more but it’s kinda nice right now not having to fix food and rinse out the feeders. You seem to have more than I do. My wife keeps track of when the first one appears and when they pick up. Last year we got a big influx at the end of June. We’ll see what happens in a month. And yes everyone loves a good hummer.
 
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I’d like to see a few more but it’s kinda nice right now not having to fix food and rinse out the feeders. You seem to have more than I do. My wife keeps track of when the first one appears and when they pick up. Last year we got a big influx at the end of June. We’ll see what happens in a month. And yes everyone loves a good hummer.
Well, I'm in SC, and thinking you're in southern or central IN? So, we're probably 3-4 weeks ahead in terms of weather and foliage. Although someone posted in here that they'd seen one in IN about the time I saw my first one. I'm expecting an uptick as well, but these are better numbers than I've had in years past. I added a couple feeders, but I also recruited several neighbors and they added some too. So in our little 5 house area we've probably gone from around 2-3 feeders to 12-13. My hope is that with that many, we'll really draw in bigger #s. So between our 5 houses, what, we have half as many as you maintain?

Our houses are close together so it's that many feeders in probably less than an acre of land.
 
Fantastic. Love it. Usually by now I’m putting out a gallon or so a week. Right now it’s about a quart to two a week. Last year the majority didn’t arrive till the end of June. Hard telling what will happen this year.
Well, I'm in SC, and thinking you're in southern or central IN? So, we're probably 3-4 weeks ahead in terms of weather and foliage. Although someone posted in here that they'd seen one in IN about the time I saw my first one. I'm expecting an uptick as well, but these are better numbers than I've had in years past. I added a couple feeders, but I also recruited several neighbors and they added some too. So in our little 5 house area we've probably gone from around 2-3 feeders to 12-13. My hope is that with that many, we'll really draw in bigger #s. So between our 5 houses, what, we have half as many as you maintain?

Our houses are close together so it's that many feeders in probably less than an acre of land.
I forgot you lived down there. I do remember you mentioning it once before. My son and wife live in the Atlanta area and they had some right before Easter. Having more people put up feeders should help
 
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Not sure about other states, but Indiana has had a disease problem this year that's currently killing birds. 50 counties reporting sick or dead birds. We've pulled all of our feeders and I pulled our bird bath this week since we got rain. It's been a pain to clean it twice/day, so I'm going to try to keep it down until next week when the weather goes back the being dry and hot.
 
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My area in the city had a few cicadas but very few. I haven’t seen any dead birds. I’m still feeding. Now my parents property is covered in mature trees and they’ve had multiple dead birds. I have no doubt it’s cicada related.
 
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My area in the city had a few cicadas but very few. I haven’t seen any dead birds. I’m still feeding. Now my parents property is covered in mature trees and they’ve had multiple dead birds. I have no doubt it’s cicada related.
Bluejays, robins, starlings, grackles and cowbirds are the most affected according to the DNR. Cicadas make sense.
 
Not sure about other states, but Indiana has had a disease problem this year that's currently killing birds. 50 counties reporting sick or dead birds. We've pulled all of our feeders and I pulled our bird bath this week since we got rain. It's been a pain to clean it twice/day, so I'm going to try to keep it down until next week when the weather goes back the being dry and hot.
Wife has turned into the crazy bird lady with feeders and bird baths all over the yard. She pulled them a week or more ago. Said she saw somewhere they were thinking it was salmonella. Birds still show up and sit on the shed and in the bushes and trees chirping WFT??? She says she's not putting them back until the DNR gives the all clear.

In the meantime she's still feeding the squirrels and the ground hog that lives under the shed.
 
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Bluejays, robins, starlings, grackles and cowbirds are the most affected according to the DNR. Cicadas make sense.
Cicadas aren’t the reason for the dead birds. This particular phenonenon was first observed on the East coast, long before the cicadas made their 17-year emergence.
 
The concentration out East appears to be where cicadas were as well…for the most part. It’s certainly very plausible. You’re not hearing about it out west, south, or far north. April is indeed early. But not late May. They came out here in mid May.
 
The concentration out East appears to be where cicadas were as well…for the most part. It’s certainly very plausible. You’re not hearing about it out west, south, or far north. April is indeed early. But not late May. They came out here in mid May.
Bluejays, robins, starlings, grackles and cowbirds are the most affected according to the DNR. Cicadas make sense.
. I’m going with the cicadas. How do you have a year where so many birds are dying and hardly any hummingbirds. By this time for the past ten years or so we had over 25 hummer feeders out and easily doing over a gallon of sugar water a day. We aren’t even putting out a half gallon a week. The only variation in all this would be the cicadas. My opinion.
 
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. I’m going with the cicadas. How do you have a year where so many birds are dying and hardly any hummingbirds. By this time for the past ten years or so we had over 25 hummer feeders out and easily doing over a gallon of sugar water a day. We aren’t even putting out a half gallon a week. The only variation in all this would be the cicadas. My opinion.
They haven't drawn a direct connection to cicadas, but haven't ruled them out yet either. Lots of the usual suspects have been ruled out though.

 
They haven't drawn a direct connection to cicadas, but haven't ruled them out yet either. Lots of the usual suspects have been ruled out though.

Thanks for the article. Brown county wasn’t on the original list I believe. I will be removing my hummer feeders. It is strange this year. I noticed that the cowbird was on the list. I love the sound they make and my wife hates it. They’re not around at all. We don’t have near as many birds as we normally have and that’s just not hummers.
 
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Thanks for the article. Brown county wasn’t on the original list I believe. I will be removing my hummer feeders. It is strange this year. I noticed that the cowbird was on the list. I love the sound they make and my wife hates it. They’re not around at all. We don’t have near as many birds as we normally have and that’s just not hummers.
Same here with the lack of birds
 
Thanks for the article. Brown county wasn’t on the original list I believe. I will be removing my hummer feeders. It is strange this year. I noticed that the cowbird was on the list. I love the sound they make and my wife hates it. They’re not around at all. We don’t have near as many birds as we normally have and that’s just not hummers.
Sad. They had a warning here in SC, but it was only for finches. Hated it, because I saw a gold finch fly by last spring and so I put out a finch feeder and had very spotty and limited visits all of last year. Then, around January, they started turning out in droves. Fun to watch them morph from their muted greenish feathers in the winter to the neon bright summer color. I have 6 perches and often would have 8-9 birds with every perch taken and 2-3 waiting nearby for one to open. I really like the feeder too because the feeder hole is beneath the perch so they hang upside down to eat. Makes them look drunk and me chuckle! Anyway, I finally was getting the activtiy I wanted, and then they recommended we take them down for 4 weeks. I put it back after about 6 weeks and now I'm back to occasional visitors again.

Our warning was for a type of bird salmonella and only applied to finches. I've had pretty decent #s of hummingbird visiting. I haven't seen any dead or sick birds and they said we might notice that in the earlier warning. Plus I take my regular feeder down during the summer, but still lots of songbirds in the area and I haven't noticed any decline in numbers.
 
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Any better news with the warning on feeders in IN? Still none in SC that I'm aware of. I have had more bee and ant problems on my HB feeders than ever before. I bought some new little feeders that have done a pretty decent job of fixing both. They have the little ant moat around the hook that you can fill with water to help prevent ants and they have 2 little slots at each feeding port that has been no problem for the hummers, but has really discouraged and basically corrected my problem with bees, especially bumble bees. The ant moats haven't been foolproof, as they evaporate quickly and I have to check and refill them daily. Once so far, I think the ants even built a bridge across the water using their bodies because the moat was still full, but I had a lot of ants on the feeder, but overall, it's been much better on ants and fixed my bee problem almost 100% (the bees still stop by because they have the location hard-coded in their brains, but they generally walk around and fly away in a few seconds when they find they can't feed). If an Amazon link works, here's the feeder I got and if you hover over the feeding ports on the picture you can see the little slit feeder opening.


Amazon product ASIN B08V4SJ2FM
 
Any better news with the warning on feeders in IN? Still none in SC that I'm aware of. I have had more bee and ant problems on my HB feeders than ever before. I bought some new little feeders that have done a pretty decent job of fixing both. They have the little ant moat around the hook that you can fill with water to help prevent ants and they have 2 little slots at each feeding port that has been no problem for the hummers, but has really discouraged and basically corrected my problem with bees, especially bumble bees. The ant moats haven't been foolproof, as they evaporate quickly and I have to check and refill them daily. Once so far, I think the ants even built a bridge across the water using their bodies because the moat was still full, but I had a lot of ants on the feeder, but overall, it's been much better on ants and fixed my bee problem almost 100% (the bees still stop by because they have the location hard-coded in their brains, but they generally walk around and fly away in a few seconds when they find they can't feed). If an Amazon link works, here's the feeder I got and if you hover over the feeding ports on the picture you can see the little slit feeder opening.


The bird situation is getting worse. It was 53 counties a few weeks ago, now it's 69 of the 92 counties. I've read that it's also affecting more birds than previously thought. Woodpeckers, wrens and finches are now on the list.

They still don't know the cause, but they're saying it's definitely neurological. I saw a sparrow that was perched on top of one of my tomato cages in the garden lean over, fan it's tail and then fall to the ground before flying away. First time I've seen that happen. I assume it's sick.
 
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Any better news with the warning on feeders in IN? Still none in SC that I'm aware of. I have had more bee and ant problems on my HB feeders than ever before. I bought some new little feeders that have done a pretty decent job of fixing both. They have the little ant moat around the hook that you can fill with water to help prevent ants and they have 2 little slots at each feeding port that has been no problem for the hummers, but has really discouraged and basically corrected my problem with bees, especially bumble bees. The ant moats haven't been foolproof, as they evaporate quickly and I have to check and refill them daily. Once so far, I think the ants even built a bridge across the water using their bodies because the moat was still full, but I had a lot of ants on the feeder, but overall, it's been much better on ants and fixed my bee problem almost 100% (the bees still stop by because they have the location hard-coded in their brains, but they generally walk around and fly away in a few seconds when they find they can't feed). If an Amazon link works, here's the feeder I got and if you hover over the feeding ports on the picture you can see the little slit feeder opening.


. For bee problems try a little PAM. The plain one works best. If you just spray it on lightly it does not bother the hummers but the bees hate it. Honey bees aren’t really bothered by it but I don’t mind them too much. Also I’d imagine the ants would not like it at all. And you can also spray an insecticide around the base of the support pole or whatever you put them on. Or just spray directly below of where you hang the feeders. Hope this helps.
 
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The new feeders I bought do a good job of controlling bees and ants, if I keep the little ant moats filled. They are pretty small, so they dry out pretty quickly, but they work and the little slit feeders work great. Hummers never missed a beat and the bees still stop by, but generally leave pretty quickly.
 
The new feeders I bought do a good job of controlling bees and ants, if I keep the little ant moats filled. They are pretty small, so they dry out pretty quickly, but they work and the little slit feeders work great. Hummers never missed a beat and the bees still stop by, but generally leave pretty quickly.
Use an old plumber's drain trick and put a little vegetable oil in the water. It'll put a topcoat on the water and slow down the evaporation.
 
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Gonna try and make a bird bath like this and see if I can get the hummers to come to it. Not sure it will work, as the ones I see on youtube all seem like Western HBs which I think are more plentiful and less skittish. I'm figuring it will draw other birds too. I have a regular birdbath and I tried putting a rock in the middle to give hummers a safe spot to land, but I never see them use it. This looks simple so I'm going to give it a shot.

Anyone have experience with something similar? There are some super easy ones but I'm looking for something that looks good and looking for a more permanent feature. If they like it and all species use it, might just get rid of my regular birdbath.

 
We get a few hummingbirds to the flowers in MrsSope's garden . . .

. . . and to the perennial lantanas we have in the back yard. Mostly in the morning . . . occasionally in an afternoon if there's no place else to feed during a hot day and the lantanas are in the shade.
 
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Gonna try and make a bird bath like this and see if I can get the hummers to come to it. Not sure it will work, as the ones I see on youtube all seem like Western HBs which I think are more plentiful and less skittish. I'm figuring it will draw other birds too. I have a regular birdbath and I tried putting a rock in the middle to give hummers a safe spot to land, but I never see them use it. This looks simple so I'm going to give it a shot.

Anyone have experience with something similar? There are some super easy ones but I'm looking for something that looks good and looking for a more permanent feature. If they like it and all species use it, might just get rid of my regular birdbath.

Took my shot at building this fountain, and actually really pleased with the results. Has a nice running water sound I like. Only had mine up for a couple days, and I haven't seen any birds use it, but they're curious and several have perched and looked at it, plus I haven't been home much so I've only gotten to watch for maybe 30 minutes over the 3 days it's been up. Guessing I'll see some in it this weekend, the doves and finches seem the most curious at this point. Let me know what you think:

 
Anyone else a hummingbird enthusiast? I've generally always put a feeder up, but last fall I visited a pottery studio near Seagrove NC and they had about a dozen feeders and lots of hummingbird friendly plants and they had hundreds of hummers buzzing about. It was mesmerizing, as they'd be shooting by just inches from your face. I also found this live link below, and so I've added a couple more feeders and enlisted several of my neighbors to put them out too to see how many we can attract. Mine here in Rock Hill SC started hitting my feeders this weekend and I'm getting regular visitors now every few minutes. Probably a little early for farther north and I know out west they get lots more and various species. If you'd like to try I'm happy to share any info I can on feeders, nectar, etc...

Watch Super Hummingbirds on PBS. nature is the show.
 
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Took my shot at building this fountain, and actually really pleased with the results. Has a nice running water sound I like. Only had mine up for a couple days, and I haven't seen any birds use it, but they're curious and several have perched and looked at it, plus I haven't been home much so I've only gotten to watch for maybe 30 minutes over the 3 days it's been up. Guessing I'll see some in it this weekend, the doves and finches seem the most curious at this point. Let me know what you think:

Have you had any fountain visitors?

We put a single feeder back up 2 weeks ago and it's been busy with 4 or 5 at a time during some stretches.
 
Have you had any fountain visitors?

We put a single feeder back up 2 weeks ago and it's been busy with 4 or 5 at a time during some stretches.
Here is a link to the most recent Indiana DNR release I could find, apparently reducing the number of Indiana counties covered by their warnings to remove birdfeeders:

 
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