Watching Hummingbirds in Central Illinois

It's been a pleasure watching the hummingbirds come across my porch to our bright red hummingbird feeder during the last few weeks of August and into September. There has been an array of both females and males having their little angry fights of who gets to feed at the feeder first. The ways that you can tell the difference between the male and female hummingbird is that the male humming bird has a bit of a ruby red throat with a patch of red under their chin. The females are usually green and have a light color on their undersides. During their "dinner time," males will usually get to have their chance at the feeder first before a female takes her turn. -So much for the statement, "ladies first."

Hummingbirds are known to fly almost nearly eighteen hours when they begin to migrate. They fly across the entire Gulf of Mexico, which seems like such a far place for their little wings to flutter. Most of the male hummingbirds usually arrive in parts of Central Illinois around May 1^st, and stick around for awhile until they begin their trip again.

Many residents of the area enjoy their company by placing bright colorful feeders somewhere on their lawns or in their porch areas. The feeders are sold in bright colors because the hummingbirds depend on their sight to find their source of food since they are unable to smell. Hummingbird feeders can be purchased at your local retail stores like Wal-Mart or even Dollar General stores. Most of them price between $8 and $10 and are quite affordable to purchase. Some stores also carry the nectar that can be placed in these feeders, but the nectar that these little beautiful hummingbirds feed on is very easy to make right at home.

The recipe below is what you can use to make your very own nectar to feed the hungry hummingbirds:

Hummingbird Nectar

4 cups of water

1 cup of sugar

Red food coloring-optional

Directions