The Real Dirt: The hummingbird, a gem of the Americas

https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2...

Love this:
"Hummers also have an exceptional spatial memory which directs them to return to the same sugar water feeders after migrating thousands of miles each year. According to Terry Masear in her book Fastest Things on Wings, "Migratory hummingbirds can remember to within inches the precise location and height of a sugar feeder they frequented before heading south for the winter." They return to the same feeder on the same day, year after year, and if the feeder is hanging higher or lower than last year, they will initially hover at last year's height."


But:

"Make sugar syrup at home by combining one part white cane sugar to four parts water, and bring to a boil for at least 30 seconds to retard fermentation and mold."

I just fail to see how boiling accomplishes anything. The air we breathe has enough fungal spores in it to colonize anything quickly. As soon as the solution cools, it is open to colonization. I largely think the boiling step is just to make people feel better. I don't boil, but I do change solution and sterilize feeders frequently.

I agree with you about boiling, I don't do it either. I do heat the water up a bit in the microwave first, just to make the sugar dissolve a bit quicker.

I think it might help make the sugar solution last maybe a day longer, but when it's 80°-95° degrees out there, even more when the sun hits it, it's not going to matter at all. You still need to change the solution every few days. Mold and fungus will form in that heat no matter how sterile your initial water was.

Hi Urban, I wasn't able to get the article you posted to come up, just got an error.

But, I know it's true that hummingbirds will return year after year. They've been doing so here for about 14 years now. Well, it started out as two hummingbirds back then and now there must be a hundred of them that return like clockwork, year after year. They breed here and have nests in the trees. Maybe they use the same trees every year too, if its still available.

And, if I didn't put the feeders out for them as soon as they arrive in the spring, they would move on to find another reliable source of nectar.

Hopefully this works:
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2...

Thank you, Murky, yes it works.

UrbanWild said:
I just fail to see how boiling accomplishes anything. The air we breathe has enough fungal spores in it to colonize anything quickly. As soon as the solution cools, it is open to colonization. I largely think the boiling step is just to make people feel better. I don't boil, but I do change solution and sterilize feeders frequently.

I suggest a side by side comparison...

I used to make a lot of wine...
I once tried cooking the fruit mixture before adding the water and sugar...

I was surprised at how long it took to start fermenting next to the mixtures that hadn't been heated...

Believe me... When you boil your simple syrup... There's gonna be a lot of difference!

My hummingbirds get lots of garden flowers to visit... I'm not going to take chances with their health, by putting our sugar water.

But that difference in potential colonization is pretty much the cool down period. After that, any exposure potentially results in colonization. It may start off as a blank slate but it doesn't even have to cool to room temperature to start growth. Food canning is a great example.

UrbanWild said: But that difference in potential colonization is pretty much the cool down period.

Surprisingly...
When I heated the fruit... it took a couple weeks before I started hearing the co2 escaping.
I thought I "ruined" the batch... I was used to the sound after a couple days.
I relied on the natural wild yeasts to produce the wine.
Really made a lot of difference... Heating the mix.
Seriously, a side by side comparison here...

No buts....

As always, people should do their due diligence and do a little research to learn how to properly use and care for a hummingbird feeder before taking on the task. I've been using them since I've lived here, about fourteen years. I started by boiling the water but now I only boil part of the water to dissolve the sugar then add regular filtered water from the faucet for the remainder.

In the heat of the summer here in hot Texas, the feeders do need regular washing. When it's hot, I wash them every time I fill them and that's usually every day (since there are probably a hundred of them flying around by then). For right now in the cooler temps, I will leave the nectar for about four days or so and then make new.

Here's an article I wrote awhile back. I still do it pretty much the same: https://garden.org/ideas/view/...

I do the same, I wash the feeders every time I refill them. In cooler weather, that's at least every 3-4 days. When it's hot, it's no more than every 2 days before cleaning and refilling with fresh sugar water. So at that frequency, boiling the water doesn't make a difference at all.

In Illinois I certainly don't get the amount of hummers that you probably get in Texas, plus I have a ton of annuals and perennials planted just for the hummers, so they don't use the feeders all that often. I think they do it more when they feel like resting while dining since there's a ring around the feeder for them to perch.

Wine fermentation looks for a specific year colonization. The decay and ferment in sugar solution is more akin to canning food. You'd never let food go that long after sterilization. That involves a great many more bacteria & fungi. I get what you're saying but I just don't see it as an apples to apples comparison.

They say that hummingbirds introduce bacteria to the sugar water with their tongues. So, it's "dirty" first sip. But, the heat makes it spoil faster (I've noticed it'll take on an opaque look to it, versus being clear).