I sent the question to a friend of mine who resides in Duluth, Minnesota who is well known for her expertise on birds (at least in MN and WI), especially HB's. If you have any interest in looking at her website the URL is http://www.lauraerickson.com/. Anyway, she responded with the following.
"Nectar varies in strength, usually between about what for sugar water would be a 1:4 to a 1:3 ratio. 1:2 sounds pretty strong! That said, I always recommend using 1:4 when it's hot and dry, and 1:3 when it's cold and rainy. I'd be concerned about birds getting dehydrated with a 1:2 mix if there isn't a lot of natural moisture. But if they can count on plenty of rain, or if there's a nearby stream, I don't think the 1:2 ratio will really hurt them." Ron Green Nature & Scenic Photographer Colorado Springs, CO http://www.greensphotoimages.com _____ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Jeff J Jones Sent: Monday, July 27, 2009 4:20 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [cobirds] Hummingbird sugar water mixture question All: I have been aware for some time that all of the stated literature recommends a mixture of 4:1 (water:sugar) for proper hummingbird food. That this most closely matches the natural sugar mixture found in the plants they normally nectar from. I was recently at an acquaintance's home up here in Teller Co that literally had hundreds of hummers at her 8 or so multi-port feeders. I was amazed. She mentioned to me that she uses a mixture of 2:1. So, the question is quite simply - what is the harm to the hummers by using such a mixture if any? And, is it truly this mixture that is attracting such large numbers of hummers to her feeders? She only lives a mile as the crow flies from me; and while I only have 2 multi-port feeders, at any one time I only have a couple hummers around. Is this mixture like cocaine or something to these guys? And does it correspondingly cause any issues? I did my due-diligence on the web before posting here and couldn't find anything definitive. I am not looking to start a thread with anecdotal info or hearsay. I am looking for something that can guide me reliably in what I should be doing. Thanks Jeff J Jones ( <mailto:[email protected]> [email protected]) Teller County - 8500' - Montane Woodlands --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Colorado County Birding: http://www.coloradocountybirding.com/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.as/group/cobirds?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
