When do hummingbirds come to NJ? Check out this migration tracker

Spring is in the air, and for bird lovers across New Jersey, that means one thing: the return of the dazzling hummingbird.

But when exactly will these tiny travelers arrive in our backyards? Well, thanks to an interactive map from Hummingbird Central, we can now follow their journey north in real-time.

It’s like watching a real-life nature documentary unfold on your screen, and the anticipation is building as we see them inch closer to the Garden State.

Here’s what to know:

What do hummingbirds look like?

Hummingbirds are tiny birds with long bills and small wings, per the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Hummingbirds have various colored feathers, with male birds typically featuring brighter colors.

Hummingbird map 2025

Hummingbird Central offers the chance to track the migration path of hummingbirds across North America with the 2025 Hummingbird Spring Migration Map. The map is currently updated as of April 14, 2025.

When is hummingbird migration season?

Hummingbirds typically migrate north in the late winter and spring after spending their winters in parts of Central America or Mexico, per Hummingbird Central.

Best hummingbird feeder

Southern Living, a home and garden website, spoke with hummingbird feeder experts and tested 10 popular feeders for two months. Here’s what they found:

• Best overall: Aspects HummZinger HighView Hummingbird Feeder

• Best budget: First Nature Hummingbird Feeder

• Best glass: Bolite Hummingbird Feeder

• Best decorative: Grateful Gnome Large Blue Egg Hummingbird Feeder

• Best antique-style: Perky-Pet Antique Bottle Glass Hummingbird Feeder

• Best metal: Perky-Pet Elegant Copper Hummingbird Feeder

• Best window: Kingsyard Window Hummingbird Feeder

• Best handheld: Zummr Hummingbird Ring Feeder

• Best large: More Birds Big Gulp Hummingbird Feeder

• Easiest to clean: Perky-Pet Top-Fill Pinch-Waist Glass Hummingbird Feeder

Hummingbird food

Here’s how to make hummingbird nectar, according to Audubon magazine:

Materials:

• 1/4 cup refined white sugar

Steps:

1. Mix sugar and boiling water until sugar is dissolved.

3. Hang up your feeder outside and wait for the hummingbirds to come.

Jenna Prestininzi from the Detroit Free Press contrbuted to this story.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Hummingbirds in NJ: When will they arrive?