How do I keep ants out of my hummingbird feeder?

It’s always a joy watching hummingbirds come to your hummingbird feeders, but sometimes these feeders can attract unwanted visitors, especially ants. What can you do?

Many hummingbird feeders—especially the saucer variety—have a center “moat” separate from where the sugar water is placed. These feeders are easy to keep ants out of by filling that moat with water. The ants that do get down into it drown, but usually just don’t even try.

If you have another kind of feeder, make sure it’s hanging by a simple rod rather than string, and use an ant trap that is placed between the feeder and where it hangs. If the ant tries to walk down to the feeder, it ends up in the trap.

Ant traps are are easy, inexpensive devices that can be found in most stores that sell bird feeders, or bought online. They usually work by filling the trap with water and that keeps ants away.

We’ve got more tips about how to get the most out of bird feeders in our Bird-friendly Homes and Feeding Birds sections.