| How to Make Anime Movies Posted: 15 Apr 2019 01:00 AM PDT Making an anime movie is a big undertaking, but there are few better ways to display your creativity. Animes fall under many different genres, all of which have varying art styles and stories. After you draft up your movie's features, you will need to draw scenes, animate characters, and add sounds. Combine all of your work into a seamless movie you can share with the world. EditDesigning Your Movie - Select a genre for your film. Animation comes in a variety of flavors. Perhaps you want your movie to be a Shonen action romp with colorful superheroes. Maybe you would rather have a cute, subdued slice of life comedy. The genre you choose informs your decisions on the movie's plot and graphic style.[1]
- Take plenty of time to think about the purpose of your movie. Some genres are more suited to ideas than others. Drama requires a lot of deep emotions from your characters, but a comedy anime needs jokes and clever dialogue.
- If you aren't familiar with genres, search online for descriptions of genres and popular animes that fit them. Watch the recommendations to get ideas on what makes them successful. Starting with genres you are familiar can help, but don't feel limited if you want to try something new.
- Combining genres is possible. A show like Psycho-Pass combines police drama, psychology, and cyberpunk elements.
- Stay flexible. If you discover a different genre is more true to your goals, adjust your film to fit it.
- Pick a conflict for your characters to experience. Let your imagination run wild to find difficult scenarios to put your characters in. You could go global and write about characters saving the world from evil, or you could go smaller and portray characters overcoming life challenges. There are many problems you can set up for your characters, so select something interesting that fits your genre.[2]
- For instance, a lot of action animes like Naruto pit characters against dangerous opponents. On the other hand, a drama like Clannad may focus on interpersonal relationships.
- Pick a graphical style that matches your movie's tone and conflict. Every anime has its own unique graphical style, which is determined by the artist's vision and what tools they have available. Style is a big part of anime and is reflected in character designs and backgrounds. The atmosphere of your movie can change depending on how bright the colors are or how realistic the characters look.[3]
- For instance, you may prefer your comedy movie to look surreal by giving characters exaggerated features like in Pop Team Epic. A more serious anime like The Ancient Magus Bride benefits from more elaborate, detailed characters.
- Studio Ghibli movies, for example, are often very soft and colorful. The characters don't have complicated designs or tons of small details, making them feel welcoming to audiences of all ages.
- For example, horror movies are often dark and gritty. You may choose to draw realistic characters with sharp lines. For a light romance or comedy, you might draw very cute characters with soft colors.
- The background graphics are almost as important as the character design. A dark city with a lot of neon lights, for example, can feel both futuristic and oppressive.
- Create the main characters and their development arc. Your main characters change throughout their story through their involvement in the central conflict. Once you have their graphical design, decide what they are like before and after the events of the movie. Go into as much detail as possible, coming up with ideas such as what each character likes and dislikes, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they react to problems.
- Outlining your character's personality can help you make them feel more real as you write them into the script.
- If a secondary character seems to have an interesting story, explore it! It could become a great part of your movie.
- For a simple idea of character development, think of an anime like Naruto where the main character starts out as a bratty kid but becomes successful through struggles and perseverance.
- Write out the story's script. Get a thick pad of paper or open a word processor document on your computer. Plot out your movie scene by scene. This includes character dialogue and actions you want your characters to take as well as the overarching story.[4]
- When you're finished, go back and read the script. Edit weak spots and errors to make the script flow better. Do this multiple times until you are happy with your work.
EditMaking Preliminary Sketches - Draw your characters to solidify their designs. Sketch a basic design for every character you plan on using in the movie. You can do this with pencil and paper or in an art program on the computer. Your designs don't have to be perfect, but make them as detailed as you can so you know exactly who you are putting in your movie.[5]
- Characters can also include animals and objects. If they play a role in your movie, you may want to sketch them out to perfect them.
- You may need to do multiple sketches before you get a character design you are happy with. Avoid settling for a character design that doesn't mesh well with your movie's concept and art style.
- For computer art, try a program such as Photoshop or Clip Studio Paint.
- Make model sheets to show characters in various poses. Model sheets are basically character blueprints. Each character gets their own model sheet where they are drawn in various ways. They are also drawn with different expressions to finalize their designs and make them consistent no matter where the movie's plot takes them.[6]
- For example, draw your characters from the front, back, and sides. Draw them with a smile, a frown, a look of concern, and confusion.
- Storyboard your script by drawing out each scene. Storyboarding is like making comic strips for your movie. You sketch out the scenes in your script, each scene being a separate panel. Below the panel, write a caption describing what happens in it, including directions like camera movements. You can make your storyboard with paper and pencil or a computer art program.[7]
- Storyboarding is a useful way to lay out the script's plot, finalize the story, and begin converting it to visual media.
- Your sketches do not have to be fully detailed, but make sure you have a clear representation of each scene. Black and white sketches are fine.
- Draw the background locations and costumes. Layouts are preliminary sketches establishing where the movie takes place. These drawings can be kept black and white but need to provide a good idea of the environments your characters will visit. To fully realize these environments, try to make them as detailed as possible.[8]
- Backgrounds affect your characters, their designs, and their personalities. They can almost be treated as characters in their own right!
- Costumes are included in layouts because they are important details for background characters. For main characters, costumes are part of their designs you sketched out earlier.
- For example, a train in a desert can be an important setting for a western anime. Fantasy animes often have colorful backgrounds with castles, while cyberpunk animes have towering cities.
- Stage the scenes by putting your characters in them. Staging involves figuring out where your characters will appear in all of your scenes. Arrange all of your background sketches in chronological order, then mark where your characters will be. Try to imagine where they will go as they move through the scene.[9]
- You may need to make more sketches, such as a closeup of an alley your characters stumble upon.
- Use staging to flesh out your backgrounds and settle upon their final designs.
EditAnimating Your Movie - Choose a computer animation program. Animation work is done by stringing together scenes and character movements in a program. To do this, you need a program that is both easy to use and comprehensive. You can choose between 2D and 3D programs which will give you lots of tools to customize your own movie.[10]
- For 3D work, try a program such as Blender.
- For 2D animation, choose a program like Animaker, Moho, or Pencil2D.
- Before computers, animation cells were hand-drawn. You can still do this, but drawing each scene takes a lot of time, especially if you work alone.
- Make mock-ups of complex and difficult scenes first. The toughest scenes take the most amount of work to get right, so most animators start there. If you drew your scenes by hand, you can redraw them in a graphics program or upload them with a document scanner. Add your characters into the scene to use it as a point of reference.[11]
- Mock-ups, or animatics, help you plan out how a tough scene will look. Use it to determine where you will put in visual effects like lights and shadows as well as other details.
- You don't need to animate these scenes yet. Mock-ups are mostly for staging purposes.
- Model your characters in an art program. You finally get a chance to bring your characters to life. The goal of modeling is to draw a functional version of each character and scene. It is like building the basic skeleton for everything that will appear in your movie. You do not need to add intricate details like every wisp of hair yet.[12]
- Arranging your models into a 3D version of your storyboard may help you imagine the characters in your movie.
- Rig your characters by giving them movement. If modeling gives your characters bones, rigging gives them muscles. To make movement realistic, you need to know where the joints are, like the knees, hips, elbows, and shoulders on a person. Use your animation program to give each character their proper range of motion.[13]
- Remember to give mechanical objects realistic movement too! Even if they aren't alive, they need to look convincing.
- With anime, you can often exaggerate movements. Think of how exaggerated some hero poses are or how low eyes and mouths drop in shock.
- Color and add textures to your models. Begin adding details to your characters and backgrounds to improve their visual quality. Color in your character's hair color, outfit, and other details. Also add color to the world around them, including small details like the lines in wood or rust stains on metal. This can be a slow process, but the movie world will look so much livelier when you're done!
- You may notice that some of your models don't look right. This is a common part of the editing process. When flaws appear, go back to the modeling stage and fix them.
- Place light sources in your scenes. Arranging the lighting is tricky since you need to be aware of everything in the scene. A nearby window, candle, or another light source illuminates an area. The light needs to come into the scene in a realistic way and seem believable to the audience. You also need to draw in shadows, such as behind characters when light strikes them from the front.[14]
- Light has an effect on the mood of a scene. A scene with low light can seem romantic, like a dinner date, or it can feel scary, like in a dingy prison. Aim for lighting that sets the proper tone.
- Materials can determine how light interacts. A reflective surface like a mirror may appear harsh, bright, and blinding, for instance.
- If you are unsure how to light up a scene, try replicating it in real life. Study the way sunlight comes in through a window, then incorporate your observations into your work.
- Animate your art frame by frame to turn it into a movie. After getting all the artwork done, you need to connect scenes together into a cohesive whole. This is done putting your characters and their world into motion. During each cell of animation, characters and other aspects of the world move slightly. Connect a bunch of movements together and you will have action in your movie![15]
- You can create motion by arranging your scenes in subsequent order and hitting the play button in your animation program.
- Think of a flipbook. If you flip the pages quickly, you create the illusion of motion from page to page. Making an anime movie is similar.
EditGiving Your Movie Sound - Download a sound program to make sounds. Any good sound editing program allows you to both record new sounds and import pre-existing sounds. You will need the sound editing program for tasks like changing the volume and the length of sound files. Open the sound files into your animation program to add them to your movie.[16]
- Purchase a program such as Adobe Audition or make use of a free program like Audacity.
- Record voice-overs for your character dialogue. Someone needs to read the script you painstakingly wrote. Choose a good voice actor for each character and record their voices with a microphone. Load the clips into an audio program on your computer, then listen to them to see how good they sound.[17]
- Good dialogue sounds fluid and passionate. The voice actors should speak like you imagine the characters would sound. Make the dialogue believable.
- Expect to record portions of the dialogue multiple times. Getting it to sound right is worth it.
- Edit the dialogue into your movie. Match the dialogue clips to the scenes they belong in. You will need to work slowly, making sure each line syncs with the animation. If the characters open their mouths when they aren't supposed to, your movie won't feel immersive.[18]
- You may need to go back and reanimate some portions to make them fit the dialogue.
- Add sound effects to your movie. Sounds like dogs barking, birds chirping, and trash cans rattling all add depth and atmosphere to scenes. You can usually find most of these sounds in royalty-free libraries online. However, if you want unique sounds, consider recording them yourself.[19]
- For instance, if your movie has a scene with a car driving away from the character, recreate the scene. You can have someone else drive the car away from you as you capture it with a sound recorder.
- You may be able to make custom sounds. Use your voice or a computer program to create sounds without having to record them.
- Fill empty scenes with background music as needed. If you need to add more sound to your movie, get royalty-free background music or make your own in a sound editing program. Background music can be used at any time, but you have to be careful with the sound mixing. Edit the audio levels so the music does not overwhelm dialogue and sound effects.[20]
- Music can be used to start and end your movie. A soaring tune can be good for a sweeping shot of a landscape, for instance.
- Monitor sound levels carefully. You can put music behind dialogue, such as by setting the music at a low level the audience can faintly hear as characters speak.
- Keep in mind ways that music affects atmosphere. A cheerful tune has a different feel than a mournful dirge, especially when you place it in a dark, violent scene.
- Finalize the music for the title sequences and end credits. Before publishing your movie, bookend them with intro and outro scenes. Your music choice is very important here since it starts and ends your movie. Create the scenes, type in the movie title or production credits, then give them music befitting the events of your movie.
- Title screens are often worked into the first scenes of the movie so they feel more natural and engaging.
- End credit scenes are often black backgrounds with overlaid text and music. If you want, you can add art or animation, but keep it simple so everyone can see who made the movie!
- Creating a movie is an individual process. Your process, or "pipeline," may look different from someone else's. Doing things out of order is okay.
- Work with other people. Professional movies have many people working different roles, such as an animator, lighting specialist, director, and modeler.
- Getting a good movie requires preparation. You need to draft your script and characters before you can make them a significant part of your movie.
EditThings You'll Need - Paper
- Pencil
- Computer
- Word processor program
- Animation program
- Sound editing program
EditReferences
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| How to Do Glitter Roots Posted: 14 Apr 2019 05:00 PM PDT Glitter roots are the latest party and festival style! This fun and fabulous hairstyle is quick and easy to do, and it uses only a few different products. Begin by styling your hair down, in space buns, or in braids before you get to work on the glitter. Then mix together clear hair gel and chunky glitter to create a glitter gel. Apply the glitter gel to your parting and enjoy your new look! To remove the glitter, simply use hairspray and paper towels, or wash it out with olive oil. EditStyling Your Hair before Adding Glitter - Part your hair down the center for a simple glitter roots style. Comb your hair free of any knots or tangles with a rattail comb and then use the end of the comb to create a straight parting down the center of your scalp. Begin with the end of the comb at the center of your hairline and gently draw it backward, through the middle of your head.[1]
- This simple hair down style is great if you want to do glitter roots quickly.
- Do space buns for a popular glitter roots look. Glitter roots with space buns is a new twist on a favorite retro hairstyle! Part your hair down the center and tie it into 2 pigtails. Twist each pigtail and coil it into a bun that rests flat on your head. Tie each bun with a hair elastic and use bobby pins to secure any flyaway strands.[2]
- Space buns are usually done quite high up, just above your ears. However, you can experiment with different heights to see what style you prefer.
- Create 2 braids for a chic glitter roots look. Comb your hair and create 2 braids with 1 on each side of your head. There are plenty of options to choose from, such as regular braids, French braids, or fishtail braids. Any braids that create a parting in your hair will work well with glitter roots.[3]
- Spray your braids with hairspray once they are complete to keep them secure.
- Try a temporary hair color to help your glitter roots stand out. Get a bright, pastel hair shadow, chalk, or mist to add to your style. Follow the manufacturer's directions closely and apply the temporary color to your parting after you have styled your hair. The temporary color will simply rinse out when you wash out your glitter roots.[4]
- Adding a temporary color product is great if you want to achieve a bold, pastel look that can easily be removed when you're ready.
- Use a pastel hair dye to create a bold look with your glitter roots. Pastel hair dyes and glitter roots are a popular festival combination! Pick a pastel pink, purple, blue, or green dye depending on the color that you prefer. Bleach your hair first and then mix the dye with white conditioner. Use a tinting brush to add the mixture to your hair, making sure to create an even coating, and then rinse the dye out of your hair once the specified time is up.[5]
- Alternatively, visit a hair salon to get your hair professionally dyed.
- You can match your hair dye to the glitter if you prefer or choose contrasting colors.
EditApplying Glitter to Your Roots - Get chunky hair glitter and clear hair gel. You can find hair glitter for sale at hair product stores, some clothing stores, and online. Pick a type that has large or chunky particles if possible, as these are easier to remove and are less abrasive on your scalp compared to fine particles. Any ordinary, colorless hair gel works well.[6]
- There are a variety of different colors of hair glitter available including purple, pink, yellow, orange, green, blue, gold, and silver.
- You can mix and match different colors and shapes of glitter to create a combination that you love.
- If you can't find hair glitter, you can use regular craft glitter too! The only difference is that hair glitter has an adhesive added which helps it to stick to your hair better.
- Mix 3 tbsp (75 g) of clear hair gel with 1 tbsp (20 g) of hair glitter. Get a small bowl and place the clear hair gel and the hair glitter inside. Use a spoon to mix the ingredients until they are thoroughly combined and the glitter looks like it's spread evenly throughout the gel.[7]
- You can add more or less glitter depending on how glittery you want your roots to be.
- Apply the glitter gel to your parting using a tinting brush or paintbrush. Dip the brush directly into the glitter gel and swirl it slightly so that the brush is covered. Try to get plenty of gel on the brush to ensure that you get an even glitter coating. Begin at your hairline and brush the glitter gel outward from your parting, aiming to get an even cover. Stop adding glitter where your parting ends.[8]
- You can make the glitter roots as wide as you like. Some people prefer the glitter to spread towards their space buns, while others prefer a very thin glitter line. If you aren't sure how wide to make your glitter roots, aim for out from each side of your parting.
- Add larger, decorative sequins or pieces of glitter to embellish your look. You can keep the glitter roots look simple and just use the glitter gel, or you can add in a few standout elements. Pick out 5-10 of your favorite sequins, large pieces of glitter, or faux rhinestones and place these along your glitter roots. Try to spread these out evenly so that there are a few large, standout elements surrounded by smaller glitter particles.[9]
- The extra sequins, glitter, or faux rhinestones will stick to the gel.
- Large heart or star-shaped glitter pieces make great additions.
EditRemoving Glitter from Your Hair - Refrain from picking the glitter out of your scalp and hair. If the glitter is bugging you, this may seem like a quick fix. However, this method is ineffective and can hurt your scalp. Wait until you can remove the glitter with a paper towel and hairspray, or oil and shampoo, instead.[10]
- You may also accidentally pull out strands of hair if you try to pluck the glitter from your scalp.
- Picking out the pieces of glitter is especially ineffective if they are fine rather than chunky.
- Use hairspray if you want to wait before washing your hair. Although it sounds counterintuitive, hairspray works wonders for getting glitter out of hair. Spray a wad of paper towels generously with hairspray. Blot at the glitter to lift it away, starting at the front of the parting and working your way towards the back.[11]
- The paper towels need to be wet to work properly, so use plenty of hairspray.
- Apply oil to remove the glitter if you want to wash your hair immediately. Pour olive oil into your palm and work the oil through your hair. Use your fingers to massage the oil through your hair and over your scalp. Aim to add enough oil so that your hair looks wet.[12]
- Alternatively, you can use coconut oil instead. Any basic oil works well.
- Wear an old shirt while you do this in case the oil drips.
- Wash your hair after 10 minutes to remove the oil and glitter. Use your regular shampoo and lather your hair as you usually would. Rinse out your hair thoroughly with running water to wash out all of the glitter, oil, and shampoo.[13]
- When lathering the shampoo, pay the most attention to where the glitter is.
- Add small amounts of glitter to your hair at a time, because it's easy to add more glitter if you need it but not so easy to get it out if you add too much.
EditThings You'll Need EditStyling Your Hair before Adding Glitter - Rattail comb
- Hair elastics
- Bobby pins
- Temporary hair shadow, chalk, or mist (optional)
- Pastel hair dye (optional)
- White conditioner (optional)
- Tinting brush (optional)
EditApplying Glitter to Your Roots - Chunky hair glitter
- Clear hair gel
- Small bowl
- Spoon
- Tinting brush or paintbrush
- Large sequins, glitter pieces, or faux rhinestones (optional)
EditRemoving Glitter from Your Hair - Hairspray
- Paper towels
- Olive or coconut oil
- Shampoo
EditReferences
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| How to Hang a Hummingbird Feeder Posted: 14 Apr 2019 09:00 AM PDT Hummingbird feeders are a brilliant addition to any yard or garden. Properly locating, hanging, and cleaning your feeder will ensure that plenty of birds stop by for a drink. Hummingbirds are most likely to visit a feeder during their migrations in spring and fall.[1] Hang the feeder as early as 2 weeks before you expect to see any birds, and keep it up several weeks after your last sighting. Having available food won't prevent the hummingbirds from migrating, and keeping a source of nectar out early or late can give stragglers and early migrators a boost for the long flight. EditChoosing an Optimal Location - Situate the feeder in a shady location to prevent nectar from fermenting. If your hummingbird feeder is in a location that receives full sun throughout the day, heat from the sun will get trapped in the feeder and raise the internal temperature. This will cause the fluids to ferment and spoil.[2] Hot nectar could also potentially burn the hummingbirds' small mouths.
- Hummingbirds won't come to a feeder full of fermented nectar, so they're likely to go hungry in this case.
- Locate the feeder where you can easily see it from inside your home. Make sure to account for your view when you choose a place for the feeder. It's a treat to watch these iridescent birds as they hover and drink. So, place the feeder within view of a window.[3] Because you'll need frequent access to it for cleaning and refilling, the location should be easily accessible, and not too high for you to reach.
- However, since feeders often have 5-6 birds buzzing around them, don't hang the feeder in a high-traffic area (e.g. in front of your home's main entrance).
- Place feeders near bright flowers to attract many hummingbirds. Hummingbirds love bright colors and naturally flock to them. For example, if you hang your feeder near a planter full of brightly-colored flowers, it'll attract many more birds than if you were to hang it in front of a drab beige-colored wall. If you're hanging the feeder in a tree or on a pole in your yard, choose a location near a flower bush or a plant with brightly-colored leaves.[4]
- If you don't have any flowers in your yard, consider filling a planter with bright flowers to draw in hummingbirds.
- While hummingbirds tend to favor the color red, they'll come to any bright flower.
- Elevate your feeder about off the ground. At this height, you'll be able to see the feeder easily and won't have to stretch or stoop to change the water. This height will also situate your feeder out of the reach of small children, pets, and pests (like chipmunks or squirrels) that could otherwise knock down or break the feeder.[5]
- To afford your hummingbirds some protection from predators and give them a sense of security, locate the feeder within of a tree, bush, or other natural cover.
- Hang multiple feeders to prevent birds from fighting over spots to feed. Male hummingbirds can be aggressive and territorial about feeding and roosting locations, so by hanging more than 1 feeder, you'll ensure that more birds can enjoy the nectar. Locate 3-4 feeders out of sight from one another. This way, many birds can feed at once.[6]
- For example, try hanging 1 feeder in front of the main entrance to your home, 1 off of a rear deck, and 1 on a second-story window.
EditSelecting and Installing the Feeder - Hang a J-hook feeder if you live in a tree-filled area or have a large yard. J-hook feeders are among the easiest type to hang up, since they only need a sturdy tree branch or pole in your yard. Simply hang the feeder's J-hook top over a stable branch on a tree in your hard or over a hook on the eaves of your house. Many J-hook feeders also come with a metal pole that you can stake in your hard and hook the feeder over.[7]
- J-hook feeders are sturdy and, if you hang them on a metal pole, can be placed wherever you like. However, since the nectar is suspended upside down in this style of feeder, they're likely to leak a little.
- If there are no branches small enough to accommodate the hook at the top of your hanging feeder, you can tie a loop of ribbon or string to the branch and hang the J-hook from that.
- Opt for a suction-cup feeder if your home has large windows. Suction-cup hummingbird feeders have 1 or 2 large suction cups at the top of the feeder that can be pressed against a pane of glass to hold the feeder in place. If you have a home with several large windows, suction-cup feeders are your best bet. Simply wet the suction cup and press it firmly against the glass to hang the feeder.[8]
- An added benefit of suction-cup style feeders is that they keep the birds close to your home. This makes for easy viewing, since the birds will hover right in front of your windows.
- However, since suction-cup feeders hang on a window, birds may collide with the window from time to time. Place a bird-shaped paper cutout in the window to help prevent this.
- Use a saucer-style feeder to attract many birds at once. Saucer feeders are round and hang suspended in the air so that up to 6 birds can feed at once. Saucer feeders commonly have a string attached to the center. In some cases, a plastic or metal piece with a loop on the end extends upward from the middle of the saucer. Hang the string or the plastic (or metal) loop over a small branch near your home. You can also hang it over a metal hook if no branches are nearby.[9]
- Saucer-type feeders are usually intended to be hung, but, provided the bottom is flat, you can remove the hanging apparatus and set the feeder on a flat surface. For example, you could put the feeder on a deck railing or on the ground in a garden.
- A benefit of saucer feeders is that, unlike suction-cup and J-hook feeders, they never leak since the nectar is at the bottom of the saucer. However, since they can attract a large flock of hummingbirds, fights may break out around saucer feeders.
EditFilling and Cleaning the Feeder - Fill the hummingbird feeder with nectar made from sugar and water. Pour 4 parts of water into a saucepan on your stove and set the burner on high. As the water warms, add in 1 part of white sugar. Bring the water to a low boil, and let it boil for 2–3 minutes so the water and sugar blend. Then, let the water cool for 30 minutes, and pour it into your feeder.[10]
- The size of the carafe varies from one hummingbird feeder to another. Only make enough nectar to fill the carafe of your feeder(s).
- If you make extra, you can store it in the refrigerator. The nectar will only keep for about 1 week, though.
- Never use honey or artificial sweeteners in your nectar, and never give hummingbirds commercial foods that contain red dye.
- Clean the feeder with vinegar and warm water once a week. Due to the high sugar content of the nectar, the feeders get dirty quickly. To clean them, mix white vinegar and warm water at a ratio of 1:4. Dump out the old, dirty water, and pour in about of the vinegar solution. Place the lid back on the feeder and shake it vigorously to clean out the feeder.[11]
- If the inside of the feeder is especially dirty, drop 12–20 grains of rice in along with the vinegar mixture. The rice will scrape stains or moldy patches out from the carafe.
- Rinse the carafe with warm water and refill the feeder. Once it's clean, rinse the feeder out 2–3 times with warm water to remove all traces of the vinegar mixture. If any vinegar is left inside, birds will stop drinking from the feeder. Then, refill the feeder with another batch of sugar water for the birds to eat.[12]
- Hang the feeder again, and watch as more of the beautiful birds come by to drink!
- Keep ants away by filling the feeder's ant moat with water. Ants are a problem for all hummingbird feeders, but get especially bad with suction-cup feeders, since ants have easy access to them. Prevent ants from accessing your feeders by filling up the feeders' ant moat with water. The ant moat is a wide trough that goes around the feeder. When ants attempt to get to the sweet nectar, they'll fall and drown in the moat. At least once a week, scoop the ant bodies out of the ant moat and dispose of them.[13]
- Most saucer and J-hook feeders have ant moats. Suction-cup feeders often don't, since the moat would be unable to wrap all the way around the feeder.
- If you're concerned about ants and wasps getting into the nectar and bothering the hummingbirds, purchase a bee guard that can be attached to the feeder. Most hardware stores sell bee guards.[14]
- Never fill the moat with oil. Small birds will drink from the moat from time to time, and the oil could harm them.
- If you don't take preventative steps, you'll soon find that your feeder is full of drowned ants, and that the birds are no longer drinking from it.
- If you're concerned about ants getting into the nectar, consider installing an ant moat or ant guard on the base of the feeder. An ant guard is a small-cup shaped barrier, hung between the feeder and the support, which keeps ants away.
- Remove the feeder during storms with heavy winds to prevent damage.
- Watch for mold in the feeder, and clean it as often as you replace the nectar.
- Never use honey, artificial sweeteners, or red dye in your nectar.
- Be aware of potential predators. If there are outdoor cats in your neighborhood, don't use a deck-feeder or a low-hanging feeder.
- If you attach the feeder to a window, put stickers or cut-outs against the glass to prevent birds from running into it.
EditRelated wikiHows EditReferences
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