When do Anna's hummingbirds arrive in Texas?
The Anna's Hummingbird is a winter visitor in Texas — here is when to expect it, when it leaves, and how to be ready.
Anna's Hummingbird timing in Texas
- Arrives
- Around November
- Leaves
- By February
- Status here
- Winter visitor
- Present roughly
- November–February
In Texas, Anna's hummingbirds are a cold-season bird, arriving around November and heading back north to breed by February.
These windows are set by latitude: Texas sits in the middle part of this species' range, so timing here tracks the continental average closely. In any given year, weather can move the first arrivals by a week or two either way.
Month by month in this state
Highlighted months are when Anna's hummingbirds are expected in Texas. The edges of the window are the interesting weeks — first arrivals and last departures vary most from year to year.
Getting ready before they arrive
The week before November is the time to act. Have feeders cleaned, filled and out by early November — the first Anna's hummingbirds into Texas are scouting for reliable food, and a station that's ready early gets added to their route.
Through the winter, consistent food matters more than variety — birds map dependable stations into their daily routes and rely on them hardest during cold snaps.
What Anna's hummingbirds eat while they're here
- Winter-blooming manzanita and feeders
Anna's stay year-round and nest in winter; in freezing weather, keep one feeder thawed.
Full Anna's Hummingbird diet guide → · Best feeder for Anna's hummingbirds →
Native plants that hold Anna's hummingbirds in Texas
Food keeps a migrant for a day; habitat keeps it for the season. These Texas-native plants are known to attract Anna's hummingbirds:
Native tubular red flowers; not the invasive Japanese honeysuckle.
Large orange trumpets through midsummer.
Scarlet late-summer spikes; a hummingbird magnet in moist soil.
Tubular flowers for hummingbirds and seed heads for finches.
Red tubular spring flowers for early hummingbirds.
Blooms right as Ruby-throated Hummingbirds return.
Early yellow flowers for hummingbirds, then summer fruit.
Nectar-rich in summer, seed for finches in fall.
Keep exploring
Frequently asked
When do Anna's hummingbirds arrive in Texas?
Anna's hummingbirds typically arrive in Texas around November. Timing can shift a week or two with the weather in any given year.
When do Anna's hummingbirds leave Texas?
Most Anna's hummingbirds have left Texas by February. They spend the breeding season farther north and return in the fall.
Do Anna's hummingbirds stay in Texas all year?
No — in Texas the Anna's Hummingbird is a winter visitor, present roughly November–February. Outside that window it is rarely seen in the state.
What should I put out before Anna's hummingbirds arrive in Texas?
Have feeders up and clean by early November — first arrivals scout reliable food sources. Good offerings for this species: nectar and gnats.
Sources
- Anna's Hummingbird — All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Anna's Hummingbird life history — Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Anna's Hummingbird — Audubon Guide to North American Birds
- eBird region overview and bar charts — Texas
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023)
- Audubon Native Plants Database
- Texas Breeding Bird Atlas — Texas A&M
Timing reflects typical patterns for the region as a whole; local dates vary with elevation and year. Check the linked eBird bar charts for your county.