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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Home made Hummingbird nectar, a seasonal reminder (1 Viewer)

And you're arguing on no evidence at all that hummingbirds require a higher standard for evidence of harm than regulatory agencies worldwide require for humans - now that's a position that's hard to take seriously. I'm done here.

Simply incoherent. And I'm done too (almost).
 
I'm a little put off by the use of the word "propaganda" when describing what we often say to neophyte hummingbird enthusiasts. While I know the word has a simpler, more basic meaning (that most don't know) and that basic meaning does somewhat apply here, the negative connotation is more widespread.

Well, I'm afraid that in my use of "propaganda" in this context, the negative connotation was intended, contrasting it as I was with "education".

Educate = to convey true information
Propagandize = to seek to persuade (often by appeals to emotion) regardless of the truth (which is not to say BTW that a given piece of propaganda is necessarily false). And propagandizing IMO is what Sheri has been engaging in on the dyes-are-toxic-to-hummers question.

And now I'm done here too
 
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Well, if Sheri is guilty of "propaganda" then so am I. I think most of us tend to err on the side of safety. If we can keep people from purchasing/using the red dye nectar, then what does it matter if my argument is not backed up by a modern scientific study, at least I've saved the would-be customers some money. I can sleep well knowing that.

And if the study is ever made and it finds that red dye is harmless, oh well, then all I've done is save would-be customers some money. But if the study shows that red dye is harmful, well then I've saved the lives of a few hummingbirds (and saved the would-be customers some money).
 
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I'm up early, and after a cup of coffee, had the energy to refill the feeders. Went outdoors after cleaning and refilling at 5:55a cst. Sunrise is 6:31a. It was light, but color hardly discernible to my eyes. As I was re-hanging the 2nd feeder, a hummer flew up seeming very upset about the activity. This is the earliest time of day I've ever seen a hummingbird, which is assumed be Ruby-throated. Never expected to see one that early.
 
Yes, they can be out pretty early.

I am bringing my feeders in every night and putting them back out every morning. I have to do this because the Mexican nectar-sipping bats migrate up here every year from August thru to early November, and they can drain my feeders overnight. I take down the feeders a half-hour after dusk and put them back out a half-hour before dawn. It's light enough to walk around without stumbling. Anyhow, sometimes the hummingbirds are waiting for me in the morning. They awake earlier than most of the other birds (I also have a half-dozen regular bird feeders and finch feeders).
 
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Hi P_man,
It was surprising for myself. Temperature was indicated 63f (17c) with a lot of dew. Figured it would take a bit for any around, to shake off the cool. Was cool enough that I kicked up the sugar/water nectar ratio from 1:4 to 1:3.9.
 
Bird_Bill, I make stronger nectar in the winter so that I don't have to bring the feeders in unless the temps go below the upper 20s (F). I'm amazed at how the hummers are waiting for me on cold winter mornings, if I'm late taking the feeders out.

(We make jokes about there being two seasons down here: Summer and Hell. But it does get cold down here sometimes -- we saw 17 degrees F last winter. Normally, in the winter, the temps only go down to the 40s at night.)
 
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