I am wondering the same thing! I have a new feeder(different shape) in the exact location the old one was. The hummingbird buzzes around it, but has yet to feed from it!

Teresa

What do the feeders look like? any photos?

Claire

If they are plastic, did you wash them before filling them? I often find that new plastic has an odor and am wondering if the hummers can smell or see something in the new feeders that they don't like.

My hummingbird must have read my post, literally a few hours after starting this thread he showed up at the new feeder. That's good news but I only saw him there one more time, at least he is using it.

I hope some new kind of toxic plastic (from China) is not now being used to manufacture hummingbird feeders. That is troubling. Maybe when I need to replace the two I have now, I should switch to glass feeders.

My feeder was purchased at Lowes; it is the flat round type and is all plastic. (looks like Droll Yankee feeder?)
I previously used the bottle-type glass feeder. I think I am going to get another glass bottle-type feeder and see what happens.

Teresa

The flat Droll Yankee type feeders are fine. Maybe it's just that the hummers haven't figured out yet that there's nectar in there. Or maybe a new plastic smell. Otherwise, I haven't a clue.

Claire

From what I've read birds have excellent eyesight and hearing, but they don't have much of a sense of smell.

Well, after several weeks and only one female stopping for 60 seconds, I'm going back to the glass feeder too. The top of the flat, round feeder is totally paled out. We'll see if changing feeders attracts anybody. A friend told me that her window feeder attracts far more, sometimes 6 hummers at a time, but the hanging flat feeder in the open near flowers only attracts a few and not as often. Maybe I should make sign: Free Food.

Jane...with no hummers :(

I have 3 feeders, 2 they are using one they aren't I have no idea why! If I could get pics to upload, (I can't for some reason) I would show you the one they aren't feeding from. They like the classic glass one, I have one that is glass too that has a bronzed type top. The one they don't seem to like is the copper one...it has red flowers, but no yellow on it. that is the only difference I can see between the 3

I will hazard a response, even though I'm NOT at all familiar with hummingbirds, having just started to hang up a feeder for them last summer....

I have noticed, though, that many of my local backyard birds (not just hummers) are very slow to adapt to a new feeder, even if *I* think it looks just like an old feeder. It can sometimes take months before they start to use it. As others have said, something may look/feel/smell different enough to put them off, or make them wary.... Maybe just have patience and wait....?

Hey, I was wondering why you don't replace those feeders with plants that attract them?
My humming birds feeders never work, but boy were they humming around my 'Gold Flame Honeysuckle', and my 'Butterfly Bushes', especially the 'Black Night' one...They love these plants and I have more success with plants that attract than those bird feeders....I had other birds common like sparrows drinking the water though..arg.

I planted 5 Honey Suckle and a couple of different types of bushes and let me tell you when I say they come around, and I live in the city...I even saw them in July and the beginning of August)

Mike - I also only plant for the hummers and get them in my yard every year, but I don't use feeders because I don't want to attract the bears that frequent our area. I think that some folks enjoy the hummers, but don't or can't (such as a small or very shady yard) grow enough different nectar-rich plants to feed the hummers all season long, so they supplement with the feeders. Each of us has a different philosophy and circumstances, but we all enjoy the hummingbirds and other birds.