There are two schools of thought out there as to whether you should group multiple hummingbird feeders together or should spread them out. It's akin to the lumpers vs. splitters argument of should the Yellow-shafted and Red-shafted Flickers be split or lumped into a single Northern Flicker species. Just not so scientific.
Anyway, Bob Sargent, noted hummingbird expert and President of The Hummer/Bird Study Group, Inc., is a grouper. His advice is to cluster as many feeders together as you can. The more feeders you have, the more birds you will have. Also, if you have lots of feeders clustered together, it is much more difficult for bully birds to guard them all.
BirdWatcher's Digest also recommends this approach in their recommendations on how to "foil a bully hummer".
Last year, this "bully" hummingbird on the feeder above would just sit for minutes on end at this feeder, not necessarily feeding, but just guarding the feeder. He would even perch facing outwards, just in order to "claim" the feeder.
The other school of thought is to spread the feeders out, keeping them out of sight of each other. The popular hummingbirds.net website favors this approach.
Our recommendation at the store is to SPREAD 'EM OUT!
The grouping approach seems to make sense where hummingbird numbers are high, like along the Gulf Coast (where Bob Sargent is located) or in the southwest. At these hummingbird "dream locations", literally hundreds of hummingbirds share a feeder location as they gather to consume massive amounts of nectar, especially during migration.
(Image courtesy of WBU Inc. Image Library)
But where hummingbird numbers are lower like here in upstate New York, we recommend spreading the feeders out. In our area, we seldom see more than 2 hummingbirds sharing a single feeder or 4-5 hummingbirds at any one time in the yard.
An uncommon sight in our area: two hummingbirds on a feeder!
Here's how we approach it: we have 5 hummingbird feeders hung at windows on 3 different sides of the house. They are all visible from the living area. This way we have been able to observe 3-4 hummingbirds feeding at once, each at a different feeder. We've had good success with this approach, and it is why we recommend it, at least for folks with similar hummingbird population and activity.
What has worked in your area? Have you tried both approaches? Let us know what YOU recommend in the hummingbird feeder "grouper vs. spreader" debate.
I live in Fayetteville Arkansas and have 8 feeders. There are at least 12 hummers and is such a joy to watch
Posted by: Judith | September 05, 2016 at 11:27 AM
Do you think having 3 feeders close together will be okay they seem too only like the one spot have tried moving them around but always seem too have too put them back I must have 25 or more trying too feed off two feeders
Posted by: Michelle | August 17, 2016 at 07:37 PM
I have so many hummingbirds. I have 4 feeders up but the hummingbirds seem too like 2 of the feeders the best i have them pretty close together but have so many trying too feed am thinking of putting another up
Posted by: Michelle | August 17, 2016 at 07:33 PM
I love this site! I have 3 feeders up, they are med size feeders! I have counted at one time( not easy I must add😊), but I have counted 25 HB on my feeders at once.. I change feeders 2x daily!!!!!!! They are amazing to watch and I love their sounds!!!! Should I have more feeders up to accommodate them all??? It's like a raceway of hb!! I have them hanging on my back porch, covered porch, morning shade and afternoon sun!!!
Posted by: Laurie Walden | August 12, 2016 at 12:27 PM
Grouping the feeders has helped. Still a bully or two.
Posted by: Mary Pat Higley | July 08, 2016 at 01:04 AM
thanks for the update, mary pat!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | April 27, 2016 at 07:25 PM
Update - grouping hummingbird feeders cuts down on 'bully birds' that dont share.
Make sure to clean your feeders regularly and get rid of mold!
Posted by: Mary Pat Higley | April 11, 2016 at 12:18 AM
Mary Pat, let us know what happens with your experiment. And/or try putting a feeder out of sight of the other feeders.
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | March 15, 2016 at 02:29 PM
I have my feeders spread throughout the yard. A bully hummingbird guards 3 feeders No sharing. I am going to put them closer and see what happens.
Refilling daily
Posted by: Mary Pat Higley | February 28, 2016 at 12:23 PM
Hi Maurice, you can buy them online at http://shop.wbu.com/products/productdetail/part_number=W10305/567.0?os=354
Thanks for asking!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | January 06, 2016 at 04:07 PM
How do you order you Hummingbird Feeders
Posted by: Maurice Lovelace | January 06, 2016 at 03:45 PM
Hi John, let us know what works for you!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | January 05, 2016 at 07:19 PM
Let us know how you do, Jeannette!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | January 05, 2016 at 07:13 PM
I've had an Anna's male at one feeder for several weeks. Definitely a bully bird although he's allowed a single female to feed briefly. I decided to add a second feeder nearby and after about a week two more birds (at least one of them another male) have shown up and it's mayhem out there. I see that while first bird is busy chasing off two birds another one gets to a feeder. It may be that all of the others are taking advantage of his distraction by turns. I'm inclined to leave it as is for a couple of weeks to see if they sort it out somehow and if not move the feeders apart. Will try to come back here with an update.
Posted by: John in SW OR | December 16, 2015 at 09:53 AM
I have a nest or two or three in a Christmas bush (not sure of the name but it has the red berries and sticker(y) leaves on it. I watch the hummingbirds go from my feeder straight across to this bush witch is about 20 feet tall so it's like a tree! And I watch the tree's branches moving from all the hummers in it!
Today I'm going to add another feeder just because I only seem to get one bird feeding at a time and would love to attract more.
Posted by: Jeannette Skjei | November 29, 2015 at 11:59 AM
Vickie, you on the Gulf Coast are SO lucky with the number of hummers you see!! Thanks for stopping in and sharing!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | September 16, 2015 at 03:34 PM
i live on the Gulf Coast and never thought about the cluster of feeders. We have , this time of year, Sept, a lot of Hummingbirds. I fill the quart jar feeders no less than twice a day! I swear every year, I will not feed them again since I need to make 10 quartz a day just to maintain the consumption. BUT then I remember how much we, and people who come by to see them, enjoy watching them so much! I have pictures where you can count a hundred hummingbirds in one picture. As you said Zen, lots of hummingbirds on the gulf coast! And I will feed again next year , and the next.....
Posted by: Vickie Johnson | September 16, 2015 at 03:24 PM
Carrie, you might want to try spreading them a little, though I do see many videos of clustered feeders (especially in the South) accommodating dozens of hummingbirds at a time. Good luck!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | September 01, 2015 at 07:38 PM
I added a 3rd feeder today because I had, what I thought, was about 5 hummingbirds fighting over the 2 feeders. After adding this 3rd feeder it still seems that whichever hummer finds the feeders 1st sits and guards it and then runs the others off. Also, after watching them today with the 3 feeders, I believe I have several more hummers. I have only been able to count 5 hummers flying around, fighting over the the feeders, but while those 5 are around the feeders I can still hear at least 3 hummers chattering in the trees. My feeders are about 2-4 feet apart, but I'm wondering if they are still too close? Even the one's on guard at each feeder will still sometimes run off other hummers from the other feeders if the "guard" has left his post to chase another away. Also, how many feeders should one need for 5-8 Hummers? I have only once seen 2 hummers at a feeder at the same time. I'm guessing that there was some nests nearby because at least 4 of these showed up at the beginning of last month & they looked much smaller than any hummingbirds I've ever seen so I'm pretty sure they were young hummers. Any advice on the feeder situation would be appreciated! I'm in East Texas, by the way!
Posted by: Carrie | August 29, 2015 at 01:25 AM
Sandy, oh I'd love to see 15 hummingbirds at a time! Thanks for sharing your experiences with your hummers.
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | August 18, 2015 at 01:20 PM
I also have a bully hummer. I grouped my three feeders together. I have about. 15 hummers. Such a joy to watch. I can hold a feeder and they will still come in to feed in Santa Fe Tennessee.
Posted by: Sandy r | August 16, 2015 at 11:22 AM
Ginny, great job finding that nest - they're not easy to find! Let us know how the additional feeders work for you. Thanks for the nice comment.
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | August 05, 2015 at 09:08 PM
I just realized that I have a nest in my Maple tree. I also just noticed that the nester is chasing others away. I bought another and put it about 10 feet from the other one. Hoping this helps. I will get a couple more and place them around the back yard, too. Any thoughts? Great site by the way. I live in Nashville, Tennessee!
Posted by: Ginny | August 05, 2015 at 06:06 PM
Susan, thanks for the great hummingbird report. Sounds like your feeders are busy!! I'm so glad you hung a feeder so you could enjoy them more. Happy birding!
Posted by: The Zen Birdfeeder | August 03, 2015 at 08:12 PM
I have so many hummingbirds at my feeder I have to refill it three times a day. I bought my home in southern Virginia late last summer so this is the first feeder I have put up. I hung it up off my back deck May 2 but didn't see any birds for a couple of weeks but now they are there from sunup to sundown. I hung another feeder on the porch but only have a few use it. I love watching them!
Posted by: Susan | July 23, 2015 at 09:48 AM