Are hummingbirds territorial?

The short answer is yes.

These birds are beautifully colored, tiny in size, and a pleasure to watch as they travel between flowers searching for nectar.

Hummingbirds are also highly territorial and will fiercely compete for resources with each other. The reason for this has to do with their migration patterns.

Hummingbirds migrate thousands of miles each year in search of blooming flowers. Many hummingbird species spend the spring, summer, and fall months in the Unites States or Canada, and spend the winter months in Mexico or Central America.

To successfully travel these incredible distances, combined with their extremely fast metabolism, hummingbirds need to consume large amounts of nectar all throughout the summer.

They are fiercely territorial of feeding areas because they need a massive amount of calories to sustain their annual migration.

Aggressive hummingbird behaviors

Hummingbird aggression is driven by their need to protect resources. For males, their goal is to attract a mate. For females, it is to secure resources to raise their young.

Here are some common aggressive behaviours that you may encounter at your hummingbird feeders:

• Body language: just like all animals, hummingbirds use body language to communicate. When they are defending their territory, they will puff up their feathers to appear larger and more threatening to unwelcome visitors. It’s tough to imagine a bird that weighs between 3 and 5 grams as looking tough, but this is very common between hummingbirds.
• Dives: aggressive hummingbirds will dive bomb other birds to intimidate them away from the feeder. The aggressor will hover several feet above the other hummingbirds and dive straight at them. The dive-bombing hummingbird typically becomes very vocal as part of its intimidation tactic.
• Chases: seeing hummingbirds chase each other will become a common sight once more of these birds begin frequenting your backyard. The birds aren’t playing a game but are intensely competing for resources. The territorial hummingbird is trying to chase their competition away from the feeder altogether.
• Fighting: this is the last resort for territorial hummingbirds if the previous strategies do not successfully scare their competitors away. It is dangerous for both parties involved because even the smallest injury can impact a hummingbirds ability to fly – which is a death sentence for them. The aggressive hummingbird will typically use its talons and bills to lash out at the unwanted invader.

Some of these behaviors are simply warnings while others resort to violence. Hummingbirds are so competitive for resources because they only have a short window in the warmer months to feed and mate before making the long journey south for winter.

They need to maximize this brief time period in order to ensure their own survival.

What you can do to stop territorial behavior

Strategically placing feeders in your yard or garden will improve the feeding environment and decrease competition amongst the hummingbirds in your area.

The rough rule of thumb is that you will attract more hummingbirds with four 10 ounce feeders than one 40 ounce feeder. The more space between each feeding spot the less likely that hummingbirds become territorial.

Placing several feeders around your yard will spread the hummingbirds out. They will feel less intense pressure to compete for the food source which greatly decreases their territorial behavior.

Another strategy is to place the feeders in clusters.

Instead of having only a single feeder in each location, cluster a few together, to increase the abundance of nectar available to your hummingbirds. This serves the dual purpose of spreading the birds out over a wider area while also making it more difficult for a single bird to defend a feeding cluster because there are so many access points.

A hummingbird that has staked a claim on a particular feeder will typically have a roost or perch nearby that allows them to always observe the feeder. Keep an eye out for where this hummingbird goes to rest. If you prune those branches away, or make the spot less appealing to the hummingbird, there is the chance it will vacate the area and leave the other birds in peace.

Are hummingbirds aggressive towards humans?

The short answer is no.

Hummingbirds are territorial and aggressive towards each other but pose no threat towards humans.

Remember, these birds weigh less than 5 grams. They are most likely to flee humans and reserve their aggression for their own species.

Additional advice to stop hummingbird aggression

By providing multiple feeders you give hummingbirds many more feeding options and will therefore reduce any aggressive behaviours.

Make sure that each feeder is well stocked with nectar, is kept clean and tidy, and that the feeders are all placed in areas that hummingbird will feel safe approaching.

Treating each feeder with equal care ensures that they are all utilized by hummingbirds instead of certain feeders being prioritized above others.

Did you learn something from this post about whether hummingbirds are territorial? We have written other interesting articles about hummingbirds. You can find some of them here:

• How to attract hummingbirds: Proven strategies for attracting hummingbirds to your yard
• How to keep bees away from your hummingbird feeder
• Hummingbird vines: The best way to attract hummingbirds

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