Migration season: Hummingbirds prepare for winter

  • According to the Texas Breeding Bird Atlas, ruby-throated hummingbirds typically migrate for the winter in October and November. Courtesy Photo.
    According to the Texas Breeding Bird Atlas, ruby-throated hummingbirds typically migrate for the winter in October and November. Courtesy Photo.

    It’s already late October. Nestlings have hatched and had several weeks to mature while feeding on insects from their mothers; the hummingbirds are ready for winter.

     

    Although some hummingbirds are known to be year-round residents of Lavaca County, many species, like the beloved ruby-throated hummingbird, are known to fly south for the winter until March. According to Birdlocations.com, most of the hummingbirds seen flying around and preparing for migration are females and juveniles; males are typically the first to leave for winter in early October. 

     

    Yoakum Garden Club President Ann Knowlton noticed an uptick in hummingbird sightings in Lavaca and DeWitt counties as the summer weather began to subside.

     

    “I've got a couple of hummingbirds that live up in my tree where my bird bath is,” said Knowlton. “You’ll see one; next thing you know, here comes another. They move so fast it’s hard to count them.”

     

    While ruby-throated hummingbirds occasionally stay put in Texas through the winter months, Birdlocations.com reports black-tipped hummingbirds are far less likely to skip migration.

     

    “Everybody that I know of loves hummingbirds. I have several feeders at my house, along with probably everybody in the garden club,” said Knowlton. “When it's time to call the hummingbirds, I'll go out there and call them. It ain't long before they come.”

     

    In addition to their bright colors and mesmerizing, hover-like flight, hummingbirds are a standard favorite of birdwatchers because of their unique trait of interacting with their human admirers. 

     

    “Hummingbirds are just one of God's wonderful little creatures,” said Knowlton. “They can attach to the people that feed them. If you're just sitting there, be still and let them look at you. If it's the same person all the time - they will get used to you. They have great memories. Some of them, they'll come right up to the front of your face.”

     

    Because some hummingbirds in our region are persistent and stay in town for the winter, Knowlton encourages people to leave feeders out year-round. 

     

    According to The International Hummingbird Society, feeders should be filled with the ratio of one cup of white cane sugar to four cups of water, food coloring should be strictly avoided and mixtures should be changed every four to five days.