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Feeder Types
Jar or Container Feeder: These feeders are the most common type for hummingbirds. They are simply a glass or plastic bottle or jar attached to a plastic or metal device that serves up sugar water in a simulated flower-like structure. The twist top and neck of these feeders often make them hard to clean. The best ones have wide mouths that allow a bottlebrush to fit for scrubbing.
Plate or Flat Feeder: These are often flat, plate-like structures with flower-like ports where hummers can feed. They often have a central metal pin or stalk from which the feeder hangs. Usually they have built-in ant moats. They come apart easily, which makes for trouble-free cleaning.
Window Feeder: Typically made of plastic, window feeders for hummers are usually small, clear and trimmed in bright red, with suction cups that adhere tightly to the surface of windows. They are excellent for attracting hummingbirds to watch and enjoy close-up. Window feeders don’t hold a lot of nectar and need to be refilled frequently, but they are easy to open and clean.
Test Tube Feeder: These are small, thin, plastic or glass feeders shaped like a test tube, usually with a red tip to help attract hummingbirds. They are good for small patios and spaces where large feeders won’t fit. Test tube feeders run dry quickly and need refilling often, but they work well to draw hummers to see up close.
Decorative Feeder: Often made of handblown glass or similar material. These often look great, but they don’t disassemble and there is no way to scrub the inside. They usually don’t last more than one season.
Bee Guards: Hummer feeders should have bee guards on their feeding ports. In late summer, when bees, wasps and other nectar-loving insects are more plentiful, it becomes much more important to have some sort of bee guards on feeders to reduce the chances of bees gathering the nectar. A bee guard is typically a small plastic device that increases the distance from the surface of the plastic flower to the nectar solution. Bees have short tongues and can’t extend them more than a quarter inch. Hummingbirds use their long bills and tongues to reach deep into the feeding ports to reach the nectar. Look for bee guards when deciding on a feeder.
Placing Feeders
Hummingbird feeders are a wonderful addition to your bird feeding stations. The best placement for these will be different from your seed feeders.
Because hummingbirds are so small, it’s best to keep their feeders closer to the house so you can easily see them. Place feeders within 10 feet of the house, but consider applying reflective stickers on the outside of windows and glass doors nearby. Glass can reflect the sky or surrounding area and set up the possibility of hummers colliding with it. Stickers will help avoid this.
Flower gardens are excellent places to begin feeding hummingbirds. They are often already feeding there, so providing them with a constant source of food will be good news that travels fast. Putting up a shepherd’s hook to hang a feeder in your garden is quick and easy to do.
Hummingbird feeding stations should be placed near a tree or other vegetation so the hummers can perch on a twig and survey the surrounding area. Feeders close to shrubs or other cover give hummingbirds a place to stage, guard their food source and look for predators before flying in to feed. Plant cover also gives them a quick place to hide in case a hawk swoops in.
When placing hummingbird feeders, be sure to install a squirrel or raccoon baffle on each one. Baffles are metal tubes that prevent animals from climbing feeder poles and shepherd’s hooks and accessing the nectar.
