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Received a hummingbird feeder for Christmas? Two words: ant moat
The tiny sprites are mesmerizing, you could sit and watch their antics for hours if time allowed! Definitely one of the most endeared birds, hummingbirds are in a class of their own. A magical experience to have them around your place during the season.What’s not so magical is the fact that ants love sugar water too. (Yes, nectar is simply sugar water you can easily make yourself- recipe link at the end). Without fail, pesky ants will find a way to invade the sweet, sticky nectar, and when they do, hummingbirds won’t drink the solution. So you end up with wasted nectar and a bunch of ants, some dead, some still alive. They’re dead because they can’t swim… silly ants!
That’s why ant moats are so perfect with these feeders. Placed above the hummingbird feeder, the ant moat holds water, and ants can’t cross the water successfully. The ant moat usually has a double-end hook, so the feeder hangs directly from it. The top hook on the ant moat is basically the main hanger. It’s a one-time investment, and very reasonable considering the results. You’ll save nectar, save money, and your hummingbirds will be happy too!
Oh yeah… and the really simple nectar recipe can be found here.
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Ant Baffles and Ant Moats for Hummingbird Feeders
Moat: Webster’s defines it as “A wide, deep ditch, usually filled with water, surrounding a medieval town or fortress”. And most ant moats are filled with water to alleviate the pesky ant problem… you see, ants can’t swim! They can not cross the water inside the ant moat to gain access to sweet nectar.Some ant moats however, operate beautifully without the use of water. This pretty wooden ant moat is deemed the “Anti-Ant Moat” and works perfectly. It does so because a special material is inserted on the under-side of the moat. Now I’m not quite sure what it is, but I do know ants avoid it. The reason I’m so sure of this is because I use one of these non-water ant moats with this substance in it, a green plastic one that h
as got to be at least five years old… and it still works great!One trick when using ant moats is to add a drop of salad oil to the water during extreme heat. This helps to slow the evaporation process, because an empty ant moat just won’t cut it. So what if you’ve got a staked hummingbird feeder? Ants can be a real pain in the butt-crawling directly up the stake and ruining fresh nectar. Hummers won’t drink nectar contaminated with ants. This is where ant baffles are used, with staked hummingbird feeders. They’re pretty much the same design as standard ant moats, but placed on the stake and used upside down. Now
how would an upside down ant moat hold water you ask? Petroleum Jelly… coating the underside of the ant baffle with this handy stuff keeps ants at bay!Don’t ever let ants ruin your hummingbird experience, or your nectar again. Use ant baffles and ant moats to keep ants out!
Oh yeah… and the simple nectar recipe: 1 cup plain table sugar to 4 cups of water-nothing else. No red dye needed either. Never use honey or artificial sweeteners as they’re harmful to hummingbirds. You don’t even need to boil the water, but using some will dissolve sugar quicker and more effectively. Right now, hummers need to double their body weight in preparation for the long migration home. Central and South America are very far away, so the nectar solution may even be a little stronger at 1:3 instead of the usual 1:4 ratio.
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make ant moat water last longer
If the current outdoor temperatures are any indication of the season ahead… it’s going to be a brutal one! Early June in the Southeast and my car said it was 99 degrees outside 🙁 Please be kind to wildlife by simply providing a fresh water source to help them thrive in this miserable heat. Aside from birdbaths, a leaf misters’ gentle spray is extremely popular with hummingbirds, butterflies, and most songbirds too!Speaking of miserable, if you feed hummingbirds (or Orioles, or Butterflies) you’re likely well aware of the attraction of the sweet, sticky nectar to pesky ants. The simplest and most effective way to keep ants from nectar is to use an ant moat. This inexpensive, one-t
ime investment will save many a headache and lots of nectar from ants. For staked hummingbird feeders, ant baffles are recommended to ward off the uninvited guests.Some hummingbird feeders do feature built-in ant moats, but even they must still contain water at all times to properly function. Ant Baffles simply use a coating of petroleum jelly on their underside to deter ants, whereas Ant Moats must have water inside for them to work. Ants can’t swim and will not cross water. During the dog days of summer with the extreme heat, you can actually help slow the evaporation process inside the moat by adding a drop of salad oil to the water. It will mean less time filling and more time watching.
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