Do hummingbirds migrate with geese? (1 Viewer)

I was told that hummingbirds actually latch onto geese and hitch a ride with them when it is migration time. Is this true? It sounds like a great idea.

btw- do hummingbirds have houses?

and if they don't, do you think they'd freeze if I were to continue to feed them in the winter? do they migrate for the heat or just for the food or is it unknown?

and is it true they can die from bad nectar feeders?

I would really like to have some hummingbird guano for my garden. I have the feeling they may be a little high strung for captivity. What do you think? and can anyone think of a way to get it anyway?

hEy, I could put a plate under the feeder at least..

COME ON SPRINGTIME!!!!!

Cakes said:

I was told that hummingbirds actually latch onto geese and hitch a ride with them when it is migration time. Is this true? It sounds like a great idea.

btw- do hummingbirds have houses?

and if they don't, do you think they'd freeze if I were to continue to feed them in the winter? do they migrate for the heat or just for the food or is it unknown?

and is it true they can die from bad nectar feeders?

I would really like to have some hummingbird guano for my garden. I have the feeling they may be a little high strung for captivity. What do you think? and can anyone think of a way to get it anyway?

hEy, I could put a plate under the feeder at least..

COME ON SPRINGTIME!!!!!

Click to expand...

Geese-aided Hummingbird Migration is a myth. Geese migrate up to 20,000 feet above sea level, while hummingbirds migrate right around sea level.

Hummingbirds build nests out of various things depending on the species (don't know too much about the actual nest building itself, just know that they do build nests).

Hummingbirds of course COULD freeze, but it is not unheard of for them to stay the winter in a not-too-bad climate. Heck, here in CT there was a Rufous Hummingbird spending the winter at someone's feeder a year or two (or three) ago.

What do you mean by "bad nectar feeders"? If you mean, "Can they die if the feeder is an alligator with sugar in his mouth?" then, yes.

As for hummingbird guano... you do whatever the hell you need to do. Just know that you can't capture a live bird. Ever. Ever ever.

overworkedirish said:

As for hummingbird guano... you do whatever the hell you need to do. Just know that you can't capture a live bird. Ever. Ever ever.

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How much guano could there really be? ;-)

Hi Cakes,

Cakes said:

I was told that hummingbirds actually latch onto geese and hitch a ride with them when it is migration time. Is this true? It sounds like a great idea.

Click to expand...

As has been said before, a myth.

Cakes said:

btw- do hummingbirds have houses?

Click to expand...

The females build nests only for laying eggs and raising the chicks. They are tiny, tiny nests build of plant fibres, small feathers etc. woven together with spider webs.

Cakes said:

and if they don't, do you think they'd freeze if I were to continue to feed them in the winter? do they migrate for the heat or just for the food or is it unknown?

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It is common understanding today that you will not be able to keep a hummingbird from migration just by offering them sugar water. If they continue visiting your feeder in winter, they would have stayed anyway. Remember, sugar water/nectar is just an additional food source (nonetheless important), they also depend on small insects.

Cakes said:

and is it true they can die from bad nectar feeders?

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If you mean mouldy, I am not sure. I have read that they will simply avoid these feeders, but I would not dare the risk... If you mean the sold nectar solution with red dye, these dyes have been shown to be carcinogen (promote cancer), and it is still not shown that they are harmless to hummingbirds, so better do not use them! A 1:4 sugar:water solution is the best you can offer.

Cakes said:

I would really like to have some hummingbird guano for my garden. I have the feeling they may be a little high strung for captivity. What do you think? and can anyone think of a way to get it anyway?

Click to expand...

lol, you will need a lot of patience to get enough... Anyway, hummingbird "guano" is a clear liquid with occasional insect parts in it. I do not think it is a valuable fertilizer... For more information, look here . Hilton Pond is also a good source for all kinds of hummingbird information. And remember, there is a hummingbird section on this forum, with a lot of experts reading and posting, I have learned a lot there.
Happy (humming)birding!

Must be cold up at Mount Lassen today. Almost had snow in Chico last night.

Rufous hummers on the southernly migration sometimes fly right over Mount Whitney 14,496. Better is when they're pouring through an east/west gunsight pass at 12,000 feet. Flowers are high in July.

As for collecting excrement. I used to hang my feeder directly over my desk as I'd write letters to friends from SE Alaska. Just open the window and bring it in. Anyway, a buzzy mob would be inches from my face as I'd write, squirting on the letter and forcing me to smear my writing. It was a clear efluent. Yeah, sounds weird but I was young. Friends always wondered why my script was the way it was.

I love you; you sent the letters anyway? yes, gardening is beautifulll in many ways. and an Amen from t#h choir on the t#mperature too! bulbous men of crystal will rise from the ground as soon as I find some gloves...


yaHOOOO to the hummingbirds feeding my flowers and feeding on my flowers
and oops, I had a brain spaz and posted here instead of looking at the hummingbird section

i bet they might ride on MotherGoose anyway..
i Believe

oh yes, actually I like the idea of hummingbird guano because they are very little and very hot and so they might be good canidates for donor because i read that the guano from small birds allows no hrmful microbes to survive the processing it goes through. But, then of course, books can be wrong because i also read that the weed seeds in bird guano weren't viable but when i used it - it sure sprouted a lot of stuff (was it contaminated when I wasn't looking, idk, haven't tried it again yet)


Besides since bird guano IS the most potent stuff around, maybe not most but certainly none is better, and if you want to use it to grow Very pretty plants, then use the most amAzinly colored bird there is?