Here’s the latest map and news from Journey North, the organization that captures sightings from people across the country and puts them on the map:
http://www.learner.org/jnorth/maps/humm_ruby_spring2012.html
Southerly winds did the job of assisting ruby-throated hummingbird migration across the Gulf and into 4 new states.
The map shows an amazing number of sightings covering the Gulf Coast from Texas across to Florida, through Loudoun and up into New England.
Here in Loudoun, we typically make sure our feeders are up by April 15th (it’s also more fun to think about than taxes…) but you may want to start that early this year. Just remember to clean and fill your feeder every few days so the sugar water doesn’t foul and make them sick.
And watch for Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers making sap holes in trees. We watched some at Morven Park this past weekend going from tree to tree. The sap running in the holes attracts hummingbirds not only for the sap but also for the insects that get trapped in it.