rusty@BOSCO.BERKELEY.EDU (06/18/88)
(Hope this hasn't been hashed out already; I don't read this list.) A few weeks ago I bought a hummingbird feeder and it came with some red-dyed white sugar, aka hummingbird food (``Perky-Pet Instant Nectar'') which they say that I should use for ``best results''. They say that you can substitute a solution of 1 part sugar and 4 parts water. There's also a warning about not using artificial sweetners which also says ``sustained use of honey can also be fatal to hummingbirds''. Taking into consideration the health of the hummingbirds: (1) Is a white sugar solution really the best? (2) If sugar isn't the best, then what is? (3) Why is the sustained use of honey fatal? Please respond with email; I don't subscribe to this newsgroup. Thanks. -------------------------------------- rusty c. wright rusty@cartan.berkeley.edu ucbvax!cartan!rusty
john@nmtsun.nmt.edu (John Shipman) (06/18/88)
In article <8806172126.AA22661@velveeta>, rusty@BOSCO.BERKELEY.EDU asks: > (1) Is a white sugar solution really the best? > (2) If sugar isn't the best, then what is? > (3) Why is the sustained use of honey fatal? The best mix is sucrose (white sugar) diluted 4:1, that is, mix a cup of sugar with water to make a quart; some prefer 5:1. Honey is not a good idea; it promotes growth of a fungus that can be fatal to hummers. I've had fungus problems with the Perky-Pet mix; as I recall, this mix is fructose-based. Many people wonder how hummers can survive on pure sugar---where do they get protein and other nutrients? In fact, a fair part of their diet (25%) consists of insects they catch on the wing. So don't worry about supplying them with trace elements (I presume this is why people consider using honey)---just help them with their energy budget, and pure sucrose is fine for that. -- John Shipman/Zoological Data Processing/Socorro, New Mexico USENET: ihnp4!lanl!unm-la!unmvax!nmtsun!john CSNET: john@jupiter.nmt.edu ``If you can't take it, get stronger.'' --Falline Danforth