February 24, 2018

Congratulations to our BirdSpotter Judges’ Choice winner, Randall Everts, of Wheaton, IL, for this photo of a Ruby-throated Hummingbird! Randall watched this individual, a regular visitor to his feeders, as it landed on a shepherd’s hook and began to groom. He says “She seems to have claimed my feeder as her own as she will chase off any other hummingbirds who show up… I was delighted to capture that moment with the little foot up.”

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, common over much of the eastern United States, love to drink nectar, but did you know they also eat insects? Plucked from midair or right out of a spider web, hummingbirds will each insect prey such as mosquitos, gnats, and fruit flies! Attract Ruby-throated and other hummingbird species to your yard by using hummingbird feeders or plants with nectar-rich flowers such as trumpet creeper and bee-balm. To read more information on attracting hummingbirds, check out this guide!

Now is the time to Vote for this year’s Grand Prize Winner! . Biweekly People’s Choice and Judges’ Choice winners are eligible to win the extra-special Grand Prize items from our sponsor, Wild Birds Unlimited. Anyone can participate by voting for their favorites. Voting runs only until March 1st, 2018. Find out more about the BirdSpotter contest.