Local woman draws horde of hummingbirds with DIY feeder hat

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - When you think of a hummingbird feeder, you probably think of those hanging jars and the color red.

Hummingbirds love red, but we bet you’ve never seen one like this News 12 viewer is using.

For the past several years, hummingbirds have been returning to Robin and Jason Moore’s home every summer, and this year, Robin wanted to see the birds up close, so she had an idea.

She made a feeder hat and shared the video with us the first time she tried it out because she wanted to share a smile.

Friday, she did more than that. She wanted to share the experience.

It’s a fashion accessory that has Johnston, South Carolina’s smallest annual visitors buzzing. Hats off to Robin for the idea.

“I wanted to feel the flutter,” she said.

All of this was an accident. Her husband bought their first feeder to cheer her up during a tough time.

“The next thing you know, we had 20. And by the middle of summer – August – we had at least 50,” said Robin.

Every summer, the birds return. Robin tracks them on a migration map, and this is just the first wave.

“I do sugar water. I don’t buy nectar,” she said.

Her hard work hasn’t even started yet.

“I take great measures to make sure that I clean the feeders. It’s a job. Amongst feeding them three to four times a day. It’s a full-time job to make sure that they are taken care of,” she said.

This year she has her brand-new feeder that even we had to try on for size. It allows you to see hummingbirds as you’ve never seen them before.

The details of their feathers, their wings... time stands still. You don’t just hear their wings. You feel it. We can’t even begin to imagine what 50 of them around this hat would feel like.

“I’m not nervous. I’m excited. I can’t wait for them to get here,” said Robin.

Like a mother anxious to cook for her kids coming to visit, Robin is loading up on sugar to spoil her summer guests, who are always welcome. She knows her time with them is limited, so she soaks up what she can. And now, she’s doing it in style.

The birds are usually gone by September or October, and Robin says it’s much quieter when they are gone. She wants to stress the importance of cleaning the feeders. If the birds get an infection and their tongues swell, it can be fatal.

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