x
Breaking News
More () »

‘Hummingbird Whisperer’ Welcomes Hundreds Of Seasonal Visitors Every Year

Ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate around the U.S. during the spring and summer, and every year hundreds of them make a pit stop in Christian Cates' front yard.
Christian Cates outside his Burlington home with his hummingbird guests.

BURLINGTON, N.C. (WFMY) – Ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate around the U.S. during the spring and summer, and every year they make a pit stop in Christian Cates’ front yard.

As long as Cates has a feeder up, the little acrobatic flyers will be there every single day.

“I think it's awesome,” said Cates.

After work and during the weekends, Cates says he just sits outside and enjoys the show.

“It helps me after a day's work just to wind down,” he said.

The hummingbirds have been fluttering to his feeders for the past 10 years.

“I have eleven feeders now outside,” Cates explained. “They keep coming back to my home every year.”

Everyone knows Christian as… Christian. But neighbors and friends also know him as the “Hummingbird Whisperer.”

According to his neighbor across the road, Tim Hallman, many in the community including his wife put up hummingbird feeders, too.

But Christian, “He really got into it,” Hallman said.

PHOTOS: Burlington Hummingbird Whisperer

The seasonal visitors have become a part of the neighborhood's fabric, especially among the children.

“It's a joy to go out in the mornings or in the evenings and just watch them, it's like watching a ballet,” said Hallman, who says he has seen over 50 at a single time in Cates’ yard.

For Cates, a member of Glen Hope Baptist Church, the hummingbirds also good company.

“I miss them during the winter, but I do look forward to their return,” he said.

Cates doesn’t plan to stop welcoming the hummingbirds anytime soon.

“To feed them and then stop, it's cruel to do that, I'm not going to do that.”

The hummingbirds are starting to migrate back to South America and as they travel, Cates sends them off well fed.

Through his experience, Cates recommends not using red dyes in hummingbird feeders because they negatively affect the hummingbirds’ metabolism.

He also advises to only put up feeders if you’re willing to “commit to the relationship’ with the hummingbirds and not remove the feeder once they are accustomed to feeding there.

Follow WFMY News 2 on Facebook and Twitter

► Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the WFMY News 2 App: Apple Users, Android Users

Before You Leave, Check This Out