Discover the Surprising Secrets of the Ruby-Throated Hummingbird Diet Beyond Nectar!

The ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris), a flash of green and red, is eastern North America’s sole breeding hummingbird. These brilliant, tiny creatures require a specialized diet to meet their extraordinary energy needs. While many people believe that hummingbirds primarily subsist on nectar, the reality is that their diet is far more diverse and complex.

Nectar: The Primary Energy Source

Like all hummingbirds, ruby-throated hummingbirds are nectarivorous and important pollinators of native flowers. They exhibit a preference for red tubular flowers such as trumpet vine (Campsis radicans), which may have in part co-evolved with them. Hummingbirds have the highest metabolic rates among vertebrates and require a constant energy source (nectar) to fuel their bodies. To make up for their constant energy drain, these hummingbirds drink flower nectar, a sugary liquid that plants use to attract pollinators. A typical Ruby-throated Hummingbird needs 10 calories a day to survive.

They will also visit a wide variety of both wildflowers and flowering shrubs and trees across their range. In addition to nectar from flowers, ruby-throated hummingbirds also take nectar from hummingbird feeders. Food coloring is unnecessary; table sugar is the best choice.

Insects and Spiders: Essential Protein and Fat

While nectar provides the necessary energy for hummingbirds' high metabolism, it lacks essential nutrients like protein and fats. To obtain these, ruby-throated hummingbirds consume a variety of small insects and spiders. According to Tallamy, 96 percent of our terrestrial birds need insects and spiders in their diets at one stage of their lives or another. Spiders, flies, mosquitoes, aphids, bees, beetles, caterpillars and gnats, which comprise a number of flying insects, are commonly part of the ruby-throated’s protein and fat diet. In fact, some authorities, like Dr. Tallamy, view hummingbirds as insectivorous birds that happen to also eat plant nectar. “Hummingbirds like and need nectar but 80 percent of their diet is insects and spiders,” Tallamy explains.

These invertebrates provide rubythroats with the fats and minerals not supplied by nectar, sap and fruit juices. At that time of the year, females may eat as many as 2,000 insects a day. They, in turn, feed their young the protein-rich food needed for proper growth and development. The consumption of these tiny, protein-rich animals only increases during migration.

Hummingbirds can both catch flying insects mid-air by “hawking,” and forage in trees and on the ground. Sometimes takes spiders (or trapped insects) from spider webs.

Tree Sap and Fruit Juice: Supplemental Sugars

In addition to nectar, hummingbirds also drink tree sap. In winter, the most common source of sap in Georgia is sapsucker holes. These sap wells are excavated by a woodpecker known as the yellow-bellied sapsucker. This odd woodpecker - a winter resident here - chisels through the outer bark of a variety of trees to create the tiny reservoirs. The sap that wells up in these excavations is the bird’s primary source of food. But other animals also eat the sugary liquid, including squirrels, butterflies, Carolina chickadees and hummingbirds. Sap is an especially important sugar source during early spring and late autumn migration when nectar sources may be scarce.

Hummingbirds are also fond of fruit juice. While the rubythroat's bill may appear sharp, it is blunt and incapable of piercing a peach, apple, pear, fig or other fruit. However, they will eat juice from fruit that has been partially eaten or punctured by a bird or other animal.

Creating a Hummingbird-Friendly Habitat

Understanding the diverse dietary needs of ruby-throated hummingbirds is essential for creating a supportive habitat in your backyard. Here are some ways to attract hummingbirds to your yard and ensure they have access to the resources they need:

Plant Native Flowers: Native plants are the key components of any productive landscape. Opt for native plants with red or orange tubular flowers, as these are particularly attractive to hummingbirds. Broadleaf ironweed (Vernonia glauca). When asked about hummingbirds and attracting gnats, Alan Ford, the Potowmack Chapter President of the Virginia Native Plant Society, instantly recommended these lovely perennial genera: the pretty purple ironweeds, (Vernonia spp.), and the yellow or white goldenrods,(Solidago and Euthamia spp.). Our native asters (Symphyotrichum spp.), and coneflowers (Rudbeckia hirta and R. fulgida) are also grand perennial choices for drawing in the bugs.
Provide a Water Source: A shallow dish of water or a birdbath can provide hummingbirds with a place to drink and bathe.
Avoid Pesticides: Don’t use herbicides and pesticides on nectar plants, to ensure the nectar is not contaminated with poisons and tiny insects are not killed.
Offer Nectar Feeders: Nectar feeders provide a supplemental source of energy for hummingbirds, especially during migration.

The Importance of Native Plants and Insects

Utilizing indigenous plants to support our birds and other wildlife is my ever-growing passion. Although not yet the norm in today’s society, the outdoor living space at our house is brimming with natives: pretty ground covers, flowering perennials and annuals, slender grasses, shrubs of all shapes and sizes, and mature native trees, as well as many newly planted saplings. We garden this way because we want to encourage as much biodiversity as we possibly can. You see, locally native plants co-evolved with specific insects and the majority of these insects are herbivore specialists that can only eat certain plants. Science has also shown us that plant-eating insects have the incredible role of transferring energy from plants to other animals that cannot eat plants. “In fact,” renowned entomologist Dr.

According to Tallamy, 96 percent of our terrestrial birds need insects and spiders in their diets at one stage of their lives or another. Spiders, flies, mosquitoes, aphids, bees, beetles, caterpillars and gnats, which comprise a number of flying insects, are commonly part of the ruby-throated’s protein and fat diet. In fact, some authorities, like Dr. Tallamy, view hummingbirds as insectivorous birds that happen to also eat plant nectar. “Hummingbirds like and need nectar but 80 percent of their diet is insects and spiders,” Tallamy explains.

The Role of Spiders in a Hummingbird's Diet and Nesting

There’s no denying they can be big and hairy and have an inordinate number of legs, but spiders are an integral part of any healthy habitat. A gardener’s companion, spiders help consume insect pests and maintain the natural balance of the great buggy outdoors. Besides being a hummingbird meal, here’s another great reason to be hospitable to spiders in our gardens: hummingbirds construct their nests with the fine, sticky web material. Purdue University’s Attracting Hummingbirds to Your Yard offers these facts: “Nests are made with down from dandelion, thistle, and milkweed, and portions of ferns, mosses, and young leaves. These materials are attached to the limb with several yards of sticky spider webs and droplets of tree sap. The nest is camouflaged with lichens usually found in the nest tree or surrounding trees. A tiny spider for a tiny bird.

The Importance of Leaf Litter and Decaying Matter

Gnats! The hummingbirds that frequent our garden entertain us with their aerobatic feats of mid-air gnat noshing. The clouds of fungus gnats making up this aerial buffet are drawn to the moist areas of decaying leaves that layers our property. The leaf litter is their prime egg-laying material. Leaf litter is also food for some butterfly larvae and this means more beneficial caterpillars. Did you know our spiders are able to survive winters under the cover of moist leaf litter? It helps them from desiccating, or drying out, which is the main cause of their mortality. Logs, branches and twigs also naturally decompose and are vital for insect nutrition and shelter.

Native Shrubs and Trees for Attracting Insects

No garden is complete without a diversity of native shrubs. Shrubs add beauty and seasonal interest and also offer cover for birds and other animals. Additionally, they can entice the insects enjoyed by hummingbirds. Here are three that do the job well: New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus) is an excellent low growing deciduous shrub with tiny white flowers. Another attractor of small insects are the pretty globe-shaped white blossoms of buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis). If you have a sunny moist area for a large six to twelve foot shrub, buttonbush would be a good addition to your naturalized habitat. Summer sweet (Clethra alnifolia) is another low maintenance and adaptable shrub. It prefers moisture and can handle shady conditions.

The value of trees cannot be overstated. But for all that we know about trees we don’t often think of them as nectar producers. You can successfully design an outdoor area that’s inviting to both birds and humans by varying canopy heights and mimicking the vertical structure of a woodland habitat. From the ground up: begin with low growing native ground covers including perennials of different heights and bloom times. And don’t forget the leaf litter! Continue the ascent with a diversity of shrubs and vines, and then add understory and canopy trees of varying heights. These layers will allow you to create a habitat for insects and spiders that will appeal to all birds and especially our wonderful ruby-throated hummingbirds.

Discovering Native Plants

Native plants are the key components of any productive landscape. But where do you begin building native plant knowledge? Your regional native plant society chapter, of course! Through their on-line posts, field trips and lectures, these non-profit organizations provide solid information about the plants that grow naturally in your area.

Delaware Native Plant Society
Maryland Native Plant Society
The Native Plant Society of New Jersey
Pennsylvania Native Plant Society
Virginia Native Plant Society
West Virginia Native Plant Society

There are tons of native plant sales in the Mid-Atlantic at springtime and during the fall. Take advantage of the cool planting weather and of the low prices offered at native plant society events and through local environmental organizations.

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