Backyard Sanctuary
Well-known member
What are the acceptable sugar to water ratio for making hummingbird nectar? I have always used 1 (sugar):4 (tap water), but have seen 1:3 and 1:5.
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Nectar: Acceptable sugar to water ratio (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Backyard Sanctuary
- Start date
1:4 is what is recommended.
I have used 1:3 when I've had wintering hummers to keep the nectar from freezing but it is not considered acceptable for any length of time.
And there are those that have used 1:5 ratio when their feeders are being taken over by bees and wasps.
I have used 1:3 when I've had wintering hummers to keep the nectar from freezing but it is not considered acceptable for any length of time.
And there are those that have used 1:5 ratio when their feeders are being taken over by bees and wasps.
humminbird
Well-known member
Actually, anywhere in that range is okay. Like everything else in nature, there is a very wide variation in the concentration of sugar in the nectar from flowers. I generally use 1:4, but when the birds are going to be under stress (migration, major storms, etc.) I will use 1:3. I have seen some well known hummingbird personalities simply dump sugar, run water and fill feeders - no measuring at all.
hummingbird nectar
A ratio of 1 part sugar to 4 parts water is best most of the time. When I initially filled my first feeder many years ago, I followed the manufacturers directions of 1 part sugar to 3 parts water for the first fill only. Some people also use the 1:3 just before migration. At that time it is mainly important to keep your feeders full.The hummers will simple feed more often. You can make a larger quantity and keep it in the refridgerator for up to two weeks. Never ever use honey because it will badly sicken the hummers. Stay with table sugar.
http://www.hummingbird-guide.com
A ratio of 1 part sugar to 4 parts water is best most of the time. When I initially filled my first feeder many years ago, I followed the manufacturers directions of 1 part sugar to 3 parts water for the first fill only. Some people also use the 1:3 just before migration. At that time it is mainly important to keep your feeders full.The hummers will simple feed more often. You can make a larger quantity and keep it in the refridgerator for up to two weeks. Never ever use honey because it will badly sicken the hummers. Stay with table sugar.
http://www.hummingbird-guide.com
Tz'unun
Featherless Biped
The 1:4 ratio has a long history of safety and effectiveness, but anything from 1:3 to 1:5 is well within the ratio of sugars to water found in the nectar of hummingbird-pollinated flowers. As the other replies have indicated, weaker and stronger recipes can help the birds face different challenges.
1:3 (approximately 23% sugar by weight) is a little closer to the middle of the bell curve of nectar sugar concentration (Nicolson and Fleming 2003, p. 4, Fig. 2A), plus as KC points out it gives the birds extra energy when they're under stress and freezes at a lower temperature for winter feeding. Many hummingbird experts now feed 1:3 all or most of the year.
A 1:5 ratio not only discourages bees, whose flowers typically produce sweeter nectar than those pollinated by hummingbirds, but it may be a healthier choice during very hot, dry weather. Hummingbirds normally get all or most of their water from nectar, but when temperatures soar to over 100º F. (38º C.) even a 1:4 ratio may not provide enough for normal body processes plus evaporative cooling. One summer in the Sonoran Desert, when the temperature was at least 106º in the shade, I watched Black-chinned Hummingbirds drinking from a scummy bird bath right next to feeders filled with fresh 1:4 solution.
Personally, I use 1:3 about 11 months of the year and 1:4 during our early summer dry season when the daily highs are in the 90s to low 100s and humidity is in the single digits. I've caught flak for this flexible approach from the 1:4 "conservatives," the 1:3 "liberals," and the K.I.S.S. crowd, but that's the way it goes. |=\|
1:3 (approximately 23% sugar by weight) is a little closer to the middle of the bell curve of nectar sugar concentration (Nicolson and Fleming 2003, p. 4, Fig. 2A), plus as KC points out it gives the birds extra energy when they're under stress and freezes at a lower temperature for winter feeding. Many hummingbird experts now feed 1:3 all or most of the year.
A 1:5 ratio not only discourages bees, whose flowers typically produce sweeter nectar than those pollinated by hummingbirds, but it may be a healthier choice during very hot, dry weather. Hummingbirds normally get all or most of their water from nectar, but when temperatures soar to over 100º F. (38º C.) even a 1:4 ratio may not provide enough for normal body processes plus evaporative cooling. One summer in the Sonoran Desert, when the temperature was at least 106º in the shade, I watched Black-chinned Hummingbirds drinking from a scummy bird bath right next to feeders filled with fresh 1:4 solution.
Personally, I use 1:3 about 11 months of the year and 1:4 during our early summer dry season when the daily highs are in the 90s to low 100s and humidity is in the single digits. I've caught flak for this flexible approach from the 1:4 "conservatives," the 1:3 "liberals," and the K.I.S.S. crowd, but that's the way it goes. |=\|
humminbird
Well-known member
So I wasn't imagining things then Sheri! I too saw a hummingbird drinking from a still birdbath this past summer. Mine was a Ruby-throated though!
I agree with you. During the summer months I will have over 100 hummingbirds. I have 4 water sources in my back yard, 2 of them being fountains. The hummingbirds love to play in the water- drinking, washing, flying thru it, etc. Several will be doing this activity together like in a group. They will also sit on top of the water spout and spin around in the water. They also do alot of drinking from that water even tho I have 15 feeders up. I generally use a 1:3 1/2, then during migration a 1:3, they need that extra energy. During the winter when I feed about 10 or so the 1:3 works very well.
Something else I'd like to mention.....use WHITE sugar (its labeled white sugar) not just sugar that is white.
Backyard Sanctuary
Well-known member
I find it interesting that people will buy the premade or dry mix from Perky Pets and others that are very costly in my opinion and have ingredients that may not be beneficial to hummers. I can get a 10 pound bag of C&H sugar at Costco for under $5 and save a bundle over the premix or dry mix packets. I read somewhere not to waste your money buying the C&H organic table sugar, but no explaination as to why not. Probably due to higher cost.
Tz'unun
Featherless Biped
Frustrating as it is, it's hard to overcome the perception that something that you have to buy must be better than something you can make at home, especially when the manufacturers actively promote this idea by claiming that their products are scientifically formulated, more efficiently absorbed than plain sugar water, contain additional nutrients, etc. The other aspect of these products' appeal is that people who insist on coloring their feeder solution think of them as more convenient. They do dissolve more quickly in water than ordinary granulated sugar, but you can get the same effect by using ultrafine baker's sugar (more expensive than granulated sugar but still less than "instant nectar").
Actually, it's related to Joanna's comment. I have yet to see an organic table sugar that was fully refined to the white stage, which is almost pure sucrose. The residual color comes in part from iron, unnaturally high levels of which can have lethal consequences in hummingbirds (iron storage disease killed most of the captive hummingbirds at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum several years ago). I buy organic sugar for myself and regular white sugar for my feeders.
Backyard Sanctuary
Well-known member
You really do learn something new everyday. Thanks for the information. I really thought it was a cost factor. Thank you for clearing that up.
