Hummingbirds are a beloved backyard visitor, dazzling us with their beauty as they hover and dart around flowers. These tiny birds have extremely high metabolisms and must consume large amounts of energy-rich nectar each day from flowers or supplemental feeders in order to survive. Providing a fresh nectar source is crucial for hummingbird health. This leads to a common question for those who love to watch these aerial acrobats – will hummingbirds drink sugar water that has gone bad?
The short answer is yes, hummingbirds will still drink sugar water even after it has begun to ferment or grow mold. However, this can be harmful to the birds so it is best to avoid letting your feeders get to this point. Understanding how hummingbirds digest nectar, why they are attracted to fermented nectar, and steps you can take to safely feed hummingbirds will help you support these special visitors.
How Hummingbirds Digest Nectar
To understand how spoiled sugar water affects hummingbirds, it helps to first look at how their digestive systems have adapted to handle their liquid diet. Here are some key points about the hummingbird digestive system:
– Hummingbirds have long, specialized tongues that they use like straws to suck up nectar. Their tongues even have fringes on the end to help lap up the maximum amount of nectar.
– They do not actually swallow all that nectar. Instead, their throats have a “holding pouch” where the nectar pools after being sucked up.
– When the pouch is full, the nectar moves down the esophagus by peristalsis (wave-like muscle contractions).
– In the stomach, nectar is quickly shunted to the intestines. Hummingbirds have very small stomachs since they don’t need to use them for storage or digestion.
– The majority of digestion occurs in a section of the intestine called the duodenum. The duodenum has brush border structures that provide a huge surface area for absorption of sugars.
– Within about 20 minutes, nearly all of the sugars in the nectar are absorbed into the bloodstream. The remaining liquid is excreted.
– To meet their high calorie needs, hummingbirds consume the equivalent of between 2-7 times their body weight in nectar each day.
As these adaptations show, hummingbirds are precision flying machines that run on concentrated sugar. They need huge quantities of rapid energy. Fermented or spoiled nectar can interfere with their highly calibrated digestive process in a few key ways.
Why Hummingbirds are Attracted to Fermented Nectar
When sugar water goes bad, yeasts and bacteria begin metabolizing the sugars, producing alcohol through fermentation. This process also creates carbon dioxide. As a result, spoiled sugar water for hummingbirds will taste sweeter and have more bubbles.
There are a couple reasons why birds may be even more attracted to fermented nectar than fresh:
– The yeasts and bacteria act on sucrose, breaking it down into sweeter-tasting glucose and fructose. So while the overall sugar content doesn’t increase, the sweetness intensifies.
– The bubbles and sparkling texture mimic nectar-rich flowers. Hummingbirds sense this effervescence and associate it with the best nectar sources.
Additionally, torpor-induced hunger may lead hummingbirds to be less discerning when they are very low on energy. Torpor is a temporary hypothermic state hummingbirds enter each night to conserve energy. They may hastily drink any available nectar to stabilize their resources after arousing from torpor.
While preference for sweeter nectar makes sense ecologically, in the case of feeders it can cause hummingbirds to ingest more spoiled nectar than is safe if it is the only option available. Knowing this, you can take steps to protect hummingbird health.
Potential Effects of Consuming Spoiled Sugar Water
Research specifically on how fermented nectar impacts hummingbird health is limited. However, there are some documented effects based on the few relevant studies as well as anecdotal evidence. Possible effects include:
Digestive issues: Naturally fermented nectar may contain beneficial microbes that hummingbirds’ digestive systems have adapted to handle, but uncontrolled fermentation of sugar water introduces bad bacteria that can cause problems. Some documented issues include:
– Slowed absorption of nutrients: The unfamiliar bacteria may simply overwhelm and slow down their specialized digestive process. Much of the nectar could pass straight through without being properly absorbed. This leaves the bird malnourished.
– Diarrhea: An imbalance of gut microbes causes osmotic diarrhea. This can be deadly for hummingbirds if it leads to dangerous dehydration.
– Other infections or illnesses: invaders through spoiled nectar can potentially also infect other tissues and organs.
Intoxication: Fresh sugar water has an extremely low pH, which limits microbial growth. However, as bacteria metabolize and convert sugars into alcohol, the pH rises to more neutral levels. Yeasts can then produce ethanol up to levels of 3-11%, making the nectar alcoholic. Effects of intoxication include:
– Impaired flight control and coordination, often causing the bird to appear almost drunk in flight. Wobbly bodies make it hard for them to perch or hover.
– Dangerous drowsiness, lethargy, loss of alertness. These small birds are at risk of predation if they are not alert.
– Disorientation and confusion. Intoxicated hummingbirds can lose their way or fail to migrate.
– Damage to developing chicks if parent birds drink alcoholic nectar then regurgitate to feed young.
Death: In severe cases, both intestinal issues and intoxication can ultimately be fatal. Even occasional consumption of fermented nectar may limit lifespan by exerting chronic stress.
To summarize, spoiled sugar water essentially attacks hummingbirds on two fronts – bad bacteria disrupts their digestive efficiency while alcohol intoxicates them. Good nectar helps power their engines, bad nectar causes a sugar crash.
Steps to Provide Fresh Sugar Water
When you understand the inner workings of hummingbird nectar digestion, it becomes clear why you should make every effort to provide these tiny birds with an optimal, fresh food source. Here are some tips:
– Change it regularly: Dump and rinse feeders then refill with fresh nectar at least every 2-3 days, or daily in hot weather. Boil water first then let cool before mixing to kill bacteria. Never “top off” old nectar.
– Use the right ratio: Dissolve plain white sugar in water at 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. This approximates natural flower nectar. Resist adding food coloring or honey.
– Avoid mold: Rinse with a water-vinegar solution to control mold growth on feeder parts. Soak removable parts in boiling water 10 minutes.
– Use enough feeders to support your local hummingbirds so each bird can find fresh sources. Have a diversity of feeder styles.
– Position carefully: Hang in shaded areas and sprinkle nectar guard powder to help inhibit fermentation. Don’t let them spill or leak.
– Know it’s time to clean when you see dark liquid, slimy textures, white stuff growing, sediment at the bottom or bubbles/foam.
– Remove feeders if: No hummingbirds appear after a few days or you will be traveling. Fermented nectar can turn deadly quickly in abandoned feeders.
Follow these steps to enjoy watching hummingbirds safely. They have unique nutritional needs, but with a little attention you can help provide the quick energy they require. Protect them from the harmful effects of sugary substances gone bad.
Signs of a Sick Hummingbird
If you suspect your feeder has made hummingbirds ill, watch closely for these signs and stop using that feeder:
– Lethargic movements and loss of coordination
– Fluffed up feathers or drooping wings
– Not perching well and legs dangling
– Struggling to fly up or down
– Breathing with beak open
– Tremors or seizures
– Diarrhea
– Loss of appetite and not feeding
– Increased tameness, inability to flee
– Dying or dead around the feeder
Seek wildlife rehabilitator help immediately for sick hummingbirds. With supportive care, the effects may be reversible. Share your experience to help experts learn about what harms backyard hummingbirds.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does hummingbird nectar last?
In general, homemade hummingbird nectar will last 2-3 days, especially if kept refrigerated. However, in high heat it can spoil in under 24 hours. It’s always safest to change nectar daily in hot summer weather when bacterial growth and fermentation happen rapidly.
Can I tell if nectar is bad?
Signs that pre-made or homemade nectar has gone bad include:
– Cloudiness
– Slimy texture or globs/strings
– Sediment at bottom of feeder
– Darkening color
– Smells yeasty or vinegary
– Bubbles or foamy areas
The more fresh nectar in feeders smells like plain sugar water, looks clear, and has no texture. When in doubt, refresh it.
What sugar is best?
Plain white table sugar is recommended, providing the sucrose hummingbirds need. Other sugars like raw, coconut, etc. may ferment faster while honey has antibacterial properties that can harm hummingbird tongues. Avoid sugars with additives. Boiling water before mixing helps further inhibit mold.
Can I reuse old sugar water?
Never top off feeders with leftover sugar water, always make fresh. The small amount left is already on its way to fermentation. Stick to a strict 1 part sugar 4 parts water ratio.
Do I need to buy pre-made nectar?
While convenient, commercial nectars have more variable quality and safety compared to homemade due to additives and processing. They also tend to be pricier. But if you refresh them daily, they can work well.
Is color dye required?
No, red dye is 100% unnecessary and can actually be harmful. It does not attract more hummingbirds. If anything, the bright colors mask fermentation. Feeders with dying nectar actually deter hummingbirds. Stick to plain sugar water.
Conclusion
Hummingbirds have evolved to thrive on the simple sugars in flower nectar. Their digestive and metabolic systems are dependent on massive intake of rapidly digestible energy from fresh, high quality sources. They lack some of the organs we rely on to process toxins or spoiled food.
While it may seem harmless to leave sugar water out too long or offer leftover nectar, letting it ferment puts hummingbirds at real risk. Their tiny bodies are vulnerable. Diseases and intoxication quickly take a toll.
Fortunately, you can easily control the freshness and safety of backyard nectar. With basic steps like changing feeders frequently, making fresh mixes, and monitoring quality, your feeders will only fuel flight rather than cause harm.
Understanding why hummingbirds are attracted to fermented nectar reminds us we have a responsibility not just to attract wildlife but also protect their health. Taking time to provide pristine nectar will maintain a safe space so future generations of hummingbirds can continue wowing us every day with their aerial dances. Watching them thrive is a reward in itself.