Prime time for spotting hummingbirds on Long Island

Is it their tiny size, fast flight or vibrant colors that make hummingbirds so irresistible? Maybe it’s their scarcity in our area, where a fleeting glance is all you are likely to get unless actively seeking them out.

“I’m sure it’s all that and more,” says John Turner, 62, a conservation policy advocate with the Seatuck Environmental Association and longtime naturalist. “Our most common local species, the ruby-throated hummingbird, has a heart rate of 1,250 beats per minute and wings that beat 50 times per second . . . It’s hard to imagine any living creature operating at that pace.”

ABOUT THE BIRDS

On Long Island, the emerald green hummingbirds arrive in late April and early May, having migrated 1,000 miles or so from southern Mexico or Central America, says North Fork Audubon Society board member Rick Kedenburg of Peconic.

They favor forest areas and mature woodlots with openings and small fields nearby. The only birds that routinely fly backward, they can be found anywhere in Nassau or Suffolk counties but are most numerous from the Pine Barrens east. You can spot them in parks, backyards or any place their favored flowers grow. Right now, their southern migration should just be getting underway, which means hummingbirds from as far away as Canada and Acadia National Park in Maine should be passing through Long Island during the next two months.

SPOTTING THEM

“Color is the key to both attracting and spotting hummingbirds,” says Turner. “They like bright red, blue and purple flowers and are not attracted to other colors like yellow or white.”

The birds also prefer tubular blooms like trumpet vine, honeysuckle and cardinal flowers — even butterfly bush, all are good choices to plant around the house.

Because of their high metabolism, hummingbirds need to eat throughout the day. They seem especially hungry when they awake in the morning and before they settle in for the night, so head out in those time slots to better your viewing chances.

“Still, nothing increases your odds of hummingbird sighting like putting out a sugar water feeder,” Turner says. “In fact, we’ve seen a definite increase in hummingbird numbers across New York State over the past two decades, and part of that has likely come from just such human assistance.”

With the feeders, avoid adding any kind of color or special ingredients — simply combine one part sugar with four parts water. That’s all the birds require.

“I think the feeders and plantings definitely are helping,” Kedenburg agrees. “I’m seeing more hummingbirds each year on Long Island. Sometimes they even get protective of the feeder, with one bird chasing others away. To solve that problem, put up two feeders, one on each side of the yard. That should diffuse the tension — and double your chances of seeing a hummingbird up close.”