More Mosquitoes, Less Hummingbird Sightings?

Posted by Mosquito Squad
More Mosquitoes, Less Hummingbird Sightings?

December 20, 2023

If you have seen a decline in hummingbirds at your Hendersonville feeders this year, mosquitoes could be part of the reason why.

Turn off the television, put your iPhone on mute, and head to your rear porch or backyard landscape where your hummingbird feeders are and feast on the beauty of nature in fanciful flight. Thankfully, it is still primetime for hummingbirds in Hendersonville, Tennessee, as most southward migration does not begin until August. Even still, some folks might have not yet seen the usual number of hummingbirds at their feeders this summer. Experts report that 2022 has been a typical migration year, and those not seeing these tiny birds are simply experiencing an anomaly.

If you are new to this amazing viewing phenomenon, you can tell the gender of a Hendersonville hummingbird by their colors. Males have a ruby-red throat, a white collar, an emerald green back, and a forked tail. The females have a green back and tail feathers that are banded white, black and grey/green. The blend of their harmonious colors is like a visual symphony as they flutter around your feeders at dawn and dusk, as well as in the early morning and late afternoon before sunset. Amazingly, they eat at least twice their body weight every day!

Could Hendersonville Mosquito Control Bring Hummingbirds to Your Feeders?

There is no cut and dried answer to this question but controlling mosquitoes around your Hendersonville TN home could make your feeders the place to be to enjoy the flights of the hummingbirds. You see, when hummingbirds are well fed on mosquitoes, they simply might not seek nectar or sugary treats at your feeders. For nutrition, hummingbirds eat a variety of insects, in addition to mosquitoes, such as fruit flies, gnats in flight, or aphids on leaves and spiders in their webs. The lower beak of hummingbirds is flexible and can bend as much as 25 degrees when it widens at the base, making a larger surface for catching mosquitoes.

If your property has a mosquito problem, consider Hendersonville mosquito control. Eliminating mosquitoes could have hummingbirds looking for optional food sources around your home. With careful placement of your feeders containing fresh sugar water mixtures, you’ll be able to direct their attention to exactly where you want.

If you’re still not noticing as many hummingbirds as you have in previous seasons, there may be logical reasons for that. You may have put your feeder out at the wrong time. They also could be nesting. To increase the likelihood at attracting them to your feeder, keep it in an area where they can be found, preferably in the shade. In fact, it is a good idea to place more than one feeder in your prime viewing spots. The “alpha male” hummingbird could bully others away, so multiple feeders placed away from each other is worth a shot. While keeping the sugar water mixture clear and pure, be sure the feeder exterior is an enticing color, as they are drawn to shades of red.

Eliminate mosquitoes around your home with top-quality Hendersonville mosquito control! Get in touch with Mosquito Squad of Nashville at 615-492-3662.