We have a 2-3 hummingbirds that frequent our yard. May be more but I don't think I've seen more than 2 or 3 at a time.

Birds are amazing flyers. They fly into trees fast - avoiding branches and landing on a specific branch or twig quickly with precision and ease. But they don't really stop when flying and otherwise seem rather fluid and imprecise. They swerve and such but it seems random.

Hummingbirds just seem precise all the time. They way they just stop and then move here and there. It all seems very conscious and deterministic. They are exactly where they want to be.

Mesmerizing to watch.

They truly are amazing animals. The way some migrate over the Gulf of Mexico non-stop is insane.

We have loads of birds here. Hummingbirds are certainly a large population, and do some of the most amazing things.

In the summertime when they are mating, they will dart up to about 80 feet in the air and then jet straight down like a lawn dart only to pull up about a foot away from the ground. They do this repeatedly all summer long.

There is a hierarchy amongst the birds where the Eagles get picked on by the crows and the crows get picked on by the hummingbirds. Nobody messes with the chickens.


I’ve seen a hummingbird almost lance/impale a crow from behind.

They can hover forever. They got air brakes, hyper throttling, automatic curve apexing and thrust vectoring built in. If we could get a fighter jet to perform like a hummer, it would be generations out front. Sounds like you need to hang a few feeders.

They also are very territorial around the feeding stations that we as humans place for them to the point of fighting other humming birds away ..................................................................... drill sgt.

They wouldn't have to eat so damn much if they'd stop fighting over the food! 4 holes per feeder, 4 feeders in yard, 16 of you should be able to chill!

Must be warm where y'all are. Still cold as shit up here. We've got a place to hang a feeder, but its not time yet. They'll be along shortly.

They are nothing short of astounding to observe. We have them up at the lake during the summer. Always have two feeders out and they are always busy. I also put nesting materials out and they use it up. When I have to bring one of the feeders in to clean and refill the moment I step outside they are dive bombing me and will actually sit on the feeder and feed while I'm carrying it.

This picture was taken during a driving rain storm in strong winds, heavy lightning and thunder boomers. They could hold their position or dart in any direction in what had to be 30mph winds at the time. There were a lot more of them than captured in this pic.

We have a couple groups of hummingbirds both front and back of house that live here all year round ... even during the winter keeping their nectar from freezing. I also give them a potted real tree during the winter with little lights on it for them to perch on out of the weather.

My dad’s cousin (I couldn’t tell you the proper name for the relationship, cause that all very confusing) has feeders all around his porch in western NC. Last time I was there, there were somewhere around fourth or more . It was super cool to watch. The Tomminator held a feeder in his hand and stood still for about five minutes before they whipped in and began feeding.

Every season when I watch the hummingbirds return, I think of the kid next door when I was young. He was a born liar - he told his sister not to wear her hair in a ponytail because the hummingbirds would see her ears, think they were pink flowers, and punch a hole in her eardrums. She believed him!

He once asked me why I never believed anything he said and I replied that, unlike his family, my family didn't ride into town on the back of a turnip truck. His comeback reply was that my family rode into town on a moonshine truck. (That might have been closer to the truth than anything else he ever told me. )

I’ve got video of my (then) 8 year-old son gently petting a hummingbird at the feeder about a year-and-a-half ago. I’ve never seen that before or since. Pretty cool.

Up until last year we'd have 20+ hanging out at the feeders. Even nesting on our patio. Last year we had very few, the nest was started but never finished. Maybe more feeders in the neighborhood? I, also, have an Oriole feeder that Hummingbirds use, too.

I put up my feeder yesterday as a result of this thread.

They say as early as Mar 1 for Houston but it just feels too cold for them to be moving this far up already after flying over the gulf.

HK Ag

You can use this map to track the migration. Gives you a better idea of when you need to hang your feeders. Lots more info on the site as well.