Care and Feeding of Injured Hummingbirds |
Personal Hummingbird Stories |
The following information is taken from "Found an injured Hummingbird?" at  Or link directly to PROJECT WILDLIFE |
The BasicsIn addition they eat insects to fulfill their need for protein. Hummingbirds must eat often and will die within 4 hours of no food source. Hummingbird adults and babies require a very specialized diet. Feeding them solely sugar water or "nectar" is like feeding children soda pop - No nutritional value whatsoever! *****Important: Do NOT feed hummingbirds sugar water or "nectar" for more than 24 hours. It will harm the bird. Babies fed sugar water or "nectar" may develop deformities or die. If you find a hummingbird, please call Project Wildlife (or another wildlife rehabilitation center in your area) at once.  |
CareHave a beak longer than three-quarters of an inch and may have some bright color on the head or neck. They have visible tail eathers (unless caught by a cat). If the birds eyes are closed and/or the feathers are puffed and the bird looks like a "cottonball," you will need to warm the birdbefore feeding. Hold the bird in the palm of your hand with your thumb covering the tail and wings so the bird can't fly Hold the bird about one inch away from a light bulb (a gooseneck lamp works well) until eyes are open and feathers are sleek on the body (usually about 3-5 minutes) If the bird starts to open its' mouth to breathe, it is too hot. Be careful do not OVERHEAT How to feed: Prepare a sugar water solution by mixing 1 tsp. of sugar (no honey or artificial sweeteners) with 4 tsp. of water With an eyedropper or syringe gently guide the birds beak into the tip of the dropper or syringe. Do not squeeze the dropper you may drown the bird. If the bird is eating his tongue can be seen moving and bubbles will be seen in the liquid. If the bird gasps, or bubbles are seen at the side of the mouth, STOP, let the bird calm down and try again Offer sugar water every thirty minutes until help can be reached. Newborn Hummingbirds – (0-9 days) Baby hummingbirds are born the size of a plump raisin. They have no downy feathers. They have yellow straw-like strands down the middle of their back. If they are very young their short beak is yellow progressing to black as they get older. Their eyes are closed and their bodies are black. They cannot regulate their body heat and depend on mom to keep them warm If you find a newborn hummingbird, do not attempt to feed it. Get Help immediately Try to keep the baby in the nest if possible If not, line a plastic margarine cup with tissue and keep the baby warm (this is essential) by placing it under a gooseneck lamp about 5 inches away from the bulb Do not overheat it. If it starts open-mouth breathing or its neck is outstretched, it is too hot. Overheating can kill it Keep them warmed to an outside temperature -- between 85 -- 90 degrees Offer sugar water every thirty minutes until help can be reached. Nestling Hummingbirds (10-15 days) Baby hummingbirds begin developing "pin" feathers (they look like porcupine quills) at approximately 10 days of age. Normally you see two tiny beaks sticking up above the nest. Mom will stop sitting on her babies at this age. They can now maintain their own body temperature. Many people think that the mother has abandoned her babies when she no longer sits on them. If you have doubts about abandonment , Please watch the nest continously for one hour for the return of the mother. She will fly in to feed them, which takes only 3-5 seconds, 4-6 times an hour. Baby hummingbirds use silence in the nest as a defense against predators. If the babies are vocalizing by constantly "peeping" for more than 10 minutes they are in trouble (starving) and need help immediately. Silent babies are usually healthy babies! If they have fallen out of the nest, gently pick them up, check to be sure there are no injuries and carefully place them back in the nest. (Always check the nest first for ants or other insects that may be attacking them). Once again watch for mom's return. If they have to be rescued and readily open their mouth, CAREFULLY drop three drops of sugar water (see adult recipe) into their mouth. Offer sugar water every 30 minutes until help can be obtained. *****Important: Do NOT feed hummingbirds sugar water or "nectar" for more than 24 hours. It will harm the bird. Offer sugar water every thirty minutes until help can be reached. Pre-fledglings – (16- 21 days) Pre-fledglings are fully feathered, have very short tail feathers and a beak less than 1/2 inch long. They are most often found on the ground. Once again, if you know where the nest is, please put them back and watch for mom’s return. If they need to be rescued and open their mouth readily, Carefully drop 5 drops of sugar water into their mouth. Feed every 30 minutes until help can be obtained. *****Important: Do NOT feed hummingbirds sugar water or "nectar" for more than 24 hours. It will harm the bird. |
How To Locate a Wildlife Rehabilitator |
The following information is taken from "..AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.." at INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE REHABILITATION COUNCIL PLEASE FOLLOW THE ABOVE LINK FOR COMPLETE INSTRUCTIONS |
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Sugar water: 1 part table sugar + 4 parts water Enough for one batch of Whole, or Complete, Food: In graduated measuring cup place two level tablespoons of table sugar (25 cc by volume; 22.5g by weight.) Add water to 1/2 cup (120 cc). This results in a concentration of dissolved sugar between 19 and 23%. Since young birds require more water, a dilution of 1 part sugar; 6 parts water is desirable when the hummingbird is a first year bird. Heat speeds dissolving. Cool 1/2 cup sugar water to room temperature. Whole, or Complete, Food: 1/2 cup sugar water at room temperature. (above) 1/8 teaspoon vitamin/mineral mix as suggested above. 1/8 teaspoon. Nekton-I (supplement for insectivores). 2 teaspoons to 2 tablespoons Vital HN (human nutritional replacement, RossLabs), depending on concentration desired. Some birds will accept higher nutrient concentrations than others.(See discussion below) Mix/stir well until all components are dissolved. Solution will be cloudy, but few solids should fall to the bottom. Freeze unused mixture. All above foods can be repeatedly frozen and thawed. Thaw in a warm water bath. Nutrients can be destroyed by the uneven localized heating of a microwave. Some people believe that 3-4 drops of live-culture yogurt may be beneficial. Others feel that inoculating a rich nutrient solution with live bacteria invites fermentation problems(sourness;dripping). Always have fresh water (changed daily) available in a syringe. Young birds need more water in their diet than older birds. With water present they canchoose what they need. "Nectar" (sugar water plus vitamins) should also be present, unless the bird consistently drinks nectar instead of complete food. Use standard (NOT luer-lock) syringes, without a sleeve around the tip. (Food can remain there and become moldy!) Draw food into several syringes, based on your schedule for the day (see below). Rinse syringes so no food remains on the outside. Refrigerate all syringes not being used. Allow to warm to room temperature before offering. Assume the hummingbird will eat about 0.75cc/hr. Monitor volume of food eaten per hour to estimate whether the bird is eating normally, and what its "normal" intake is. The more dilute the food the greater the volume eaten. Monitor the food for bacterial growth (dripping). This formulation ordinarily will not spoil in less than 10 or so hours. However, the rate of spoilage will depend on ambient temperature and keeping food and containers very clean. Hummingbirds need to have enough light to eat for at least 14 hours per day. As complete food could spoil overnight and taste bad, if you intend to sleep after dawn leave a syringe of sugar water (or nectar) available when you turn out the lights at night. A hummingbird will starve to death before it eats something that tastes bad. If you want the bird to sleep, be sure it's in the dark. Otherwise, it will be awake, even if not active, and will need food. Since Vital HN may be difficult to obtain, Vivonex TEN seems to be an adequate substitute. However the authors do not have as much experience with that material as with Vital. It is EXTREMELY important to: Keep food fresh (change every few hours if possible) Disinfect food containers. This can be done by soaking syringes in a 1:10 bleach:water solution for at least 10 minutes between each use. Rinse thoroughly! Remember that hummingbirds will not eat something that tastes sour. If you fail to be meticulous in cleanliness, you risk giving the bird an infection. Feeding Sub-adult Hummingbirds Juvenile hummingbirds have bills that are shorter than those of adults. In fledgling black-chinned hummingbirds between 3 and 6 weeks of age the exposed culmen measures 13-20+ mm long. As these birds need more water than adults, they should be fed sugar at a concentration of 1:6 in water. Before 3 weeks of age, in the rapid growth phase, nestlings require more protein, other complex nutrients and water. They need very little sugar. Consult an experienced rehabilitator immediately for care of nestling hummingbirds. |
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