Most Hummingbirds in the United States depart for Mexico where they will spend the winter. However, it is not uncommon to see hummingbirds during the winter in some parts of the United States. Anna’s Hummingbirds are non-migratory and can usually be found on the West Coast of the U.S. Some Anna’s have been known to stray into very frigid locations – one wintered in Ellensburg, WA a few years ago as the temperatures dropped to near 0 degrees Fahrenheit. Rufous Hummingbirds are also showing up more commonly in the Southeast United States during the winter.

Keep your eyes out as you never know when you might see a wintering hummingbird. Often times a local hummingbird bander, with your consent, might wish to document your finding. Be sure to contact your local Audubon Chapter with your find as they will be interested!

If you want to increase the odds that you might see a wintering hummingbird, be sure to keep out some fresh hummingbird nectar, Don’t worry, keeping nectar out will not stop the hummingbird from migrating.

As temperatures get cooler, you will want to ensure that your nectar does not freeze, especially, if you have a hummingbird visiting you. Here are some tips to reduce the chances of your nectar from freezing.

When temperatures are consistently near freezing, you might want to use a stronger nectar solution of 3 to 1 (as opposed to 4 to 1). This stronger solution may keep your nectar from freezing down until about 27 degrees. The stronger nectar solution should only be used during periods of cold temperatures.

Consider swapping feeders throughout a cold day. You could have a spare in the refrigerator, ready to swap, if your outside feeder starts to freeze. With night time colder temperatures, you might also bring your feeder in at night and store it in the refrigerator.

Another simple way to keep hummingbird feeders from freezing in the winter is to place a clip-on shop light equipped with a 150-watt bulb close to the feeder. When there is a chance that the temperature will dip below freezing, turn the light on. The heat generated by the light bulb should keep the feeder from freezing. You will want to determine how close you can place the bulb next to the feeder without melting plastic feeder parts. Mount the light at varying distances from your feeder and see what works best with your feeder. Be sure to test this prior to leaving your light on for extended periods of time.

Twist-it wires can be used to attach an electric mug warmer to the bottom of the feeder. Placing it on a low setting should be enough to keep the hummingbird food from freezing and does not draw a lot of power. You will want to watch this at first to ensure that the base of the feeder does not melt if it is plastic.

Little Hotties (Hand Warmers) can be duct taped to the bottom of the feeder. They last about eight hours which is approximately all of the day light hours during this time of year anyway.