Jan - I am wondering the same thing. I have been hearing conflicting information about this. I know for a fact that folks that live just 15 minutes south of me have hummers in the summer. I have had several hummers since I first saw one in November. They are still here everyday at my feeders. And then I have been told by folks that work at plant nurseries that the hummers come in the Spring (early March). And then a co-worker told me they start showing up in September. So .... from all the info I have gathered, it almost sounds like they are here more than not.

Is there a website with more concise info?

This site that I have aded below, 'specializes in RT', and they have come to Costa Rica for the past few years in early January to band the hummers.

Here is a link that might be useful: Operation RubyThroat: The Hummingbird Project

Read my post on the "Hummingbirds in Florida?" thread from 2/16 and visit my website at http://mysite.verizon.net/resu64md/yardhummers/ I've been working with a licensed bander, trapping and banding hummingbirds in my Valrico yard for the past 6 years.

I've been "studying" hummingbirds in Florida for the past 10 years. Visit my first page at: http://rowdy13.tripod.com/floridahummers/home.htm for a little background on hummingbirds in Florida. Unfortunately, not much was really known regarding the status of hummingbirds in the state prior to then. Even the Websites from the University of Florida had many errors regarding timing and the distribution of the birds.

This year has been an amazing year for "out-of-range" wintering hummingbirds in Florida with an Anna's, a Broad-tailed, and 2 Broad-billed Hummingbirds being trapped and banded in north Florida and the Panhandle. There have also been a number of Buff-bellieds, Calliopes, and many Rufous and Black-chinned Hummingbirds banded as well. I've currently got a female Rufous in my yard that was originally banded in my yard as an adult in November of 2003 and has returned every August since. She leaves for somewhere out west evdery MaRCH. We trapped her to confirm her band number along with 6 Ruby-throateds in an hour on January 15th.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://mysite.verizon.net/resu64md/yardhummers/

Interesting. I noticed mine since December. I'm sure it must have been here longer it's just that I have never seen one here before so it was a real shocker!
Now my yard is dedicated to the hummers! LOL

In rereading my post, I said everything I was going to except answer your question.

Ruby-throateds arrive in Florida between August and September and leave between March and April. The young birds and adult males may begin to show up in late June to July but I believe these are birds that hatched or summered here and are just beginning post-breeding dispersal. The adult males don't help with the nest so they just move around looking for love or getting fat in preparation for migration. They will almost double their weight from on around 3 grams to as high as 6 grams before migrating. They may need that much for the flight over the Gulf. The last birds to come through will be the young from the last broods and the adult females who will need to wait until the kids are gone before she can begin to fatten up in preparation for the long flight south.

Ruby-throat migration north begins in late February to March or once they've completed their molt and built up enough weight. I've had birds stay into May before leaving and they've been the ones whose gorget filled in last.

There are a number of other factors that may influence when a bird shows up or leaves. Territorial disputes and food availability are among the most common reasons. A bird who is comfortable with its territory may be pushed out by a later arriving bird or by one who has "lost" its territory. Later migrating birds may be more aggrassive and capable of moving out a bird. The Rufous is known for its aggressiveness. Loss of a food source is also a reason for sudden failure of a territory. It may be due to the loss of a feeder or more likely a change in weather or the blooming season of the predominant flower.

Your discovery of a bird in December may be due to a cold snap that that killed off (or removed blooms of) a major food source in its old territory (or one of a competitors)near your neighborhood. Similar events can also remove the bird from your yard. This is why I always encourage offering feeders even if you're offering a good selection of blooming plants. I actually hope for freezes prior to our banding sessions because it increases the number of birds in my yard for a short period if time. I offer a number of feeders but I also have a number of my plants near the house or under trees and shrubs which help to warm them just that little bit that reduces the loss to freeze.

Very helpful info, rowdy!

It should be noted that Rowdy's dates apply to southern Florida, the border would be somewhere just south of Osceola county and further south. Valrico fits this pattern.

For the rest of Florida the dates are reversed. Rubythroats come with the migration from Mexico starting in early March and leave sometime in late August to early September. There is a discussion thread just below or perhaps now just above this that discusses this.

Tom,

Yes and no.

I explained in my post to the 'Hummingbirds in Florida?' topic that summering birds are more likely the farther north you go and wintering birds are more likely the farther south you go but you will find them throughout the state year round.

They are hard to find in the summer south of Osceola but I had them at my Tampa apartment every summer prior to moving in 2000. I'm also aware of recent reports of nests in Naples and the Miami area. The Birdlife of Florida published in 1994 lists Ruby-throated Hummingbird breeding in almost every county of the state. So, they do nest in the south but I would not suggest that anyone could be successful in attracting one in the summer. It would take a considerable amount of luck.

On the other hand, many Ruby-throateds are being banded north of Tampa on into Alabama, Georgia, and the Carolinas. There are more Rufous and possibly Black-chinneds being banded in these areas than Ruby-throated but with some luck and feeders there is still a better chance of attracting wintering hummingbirds in the north than summering birds in the south. I will say that without a feeder in the north, you have very little chance of seeing a hummingbird in the winter. I strongly urge anyone interested in attracting hummingbirds in the state (especially north of Osceola) to hang and maintain at least one feeder where it can be regularly watched. This is especially true just after a freeze.

Use a minimal amount of solution in the feeder. Change it out every couple of days before any mold occurs and all you need to do is rinse it with hot water. You can make a cup or two of sugar solution last a week or so even with regular cleanings if you use just enough solution to be able to see it in the feeder.

Fred Bassett and Doreen Cubie are the banders who have banded in my yard. They are both associated with the Hummer Bird Study Group (see the link below). I am pretty much the most southerly yard where they band so there are plenty of hummingbirds to the north of me.

Steve (Rowdy was my cat for 21 years)

Here is a link that might be useful: Hummer Bird Study Group