The Bishop Hill Hummingbird Festival at The Bishop Hill Creative Commons, located at 309 North Bishop Hill Rd., is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 12 from dawn to dusk.
There is a backstory for the event, said Brian “Fox” Ellis, a resident of Bishop Hill, as well as an acclaimed author, storyteller, historian and naturalist.
Five years ago, Ellis was invited to speak at several hummingbird festivals and it was then he decided to bring such a festival to the historic village of Bishop Hill, although that sounds easier than it actually was.
Ellis spent several years planting hummingbird gardens around town. Hummingbirds, he said, are very much attracted to red, but any tubular flower will bring them to the area. The perennial red cardinal flower and swamp milkweed, in particular, are their favorites. He planted both and currently, “the swamp milkweed is just blazing and beautiful,” he said.
Ellis is solid in his knowledge of the much-loved birds. Hummingbirds arrive in these parts in late April or early May and enjoy the Columbine flower and the red buckeye tree. When they depart in the fall depends, he said, but usually it’s before the first frost and he urges people who love the birds to keep at least one feeder up into the late fall, early winter.
“You can have a vagrant until December,” said Ellis.
But August is when the Hummingbird Festival will take place. It’s that time, he said, when you get a peak season of the population that includes the young that have learned to fly and the northern birds that have flown south from Canada.
If you come to the festival hoping to see some hummingbirds, Ellis believes you will get some glimpses.
“A lot of it happens in the backyard of the Commons,” said Ellis. “There is a feeder off the back porch, and throughout the day, hummingbirds are hitting the feeder.”
In addition to planting native plants and flowers for the festival, Ellis maintains 20 special feeders throughout the village in an effort to attract as many hummingbirds as possible for festival viewing.
Since its inception, the festival has continued to grow, and the list of activities is lengthy. Some of the activities and events of the day include a talk by Pete Moline with Wild Birds Unlimited on the care and feeding of hummingbirds at 1:30 pm.
Ellis will kick off the day at 8 am with bird watching at The Twinflower Inn. At 10 am, attendees are invited to learn about the planning and planting of a prairie pollinator garden. At 11 am, the Illinois Botanizer, Chris Benda, will speak on identifying prairie plants. At 1 pm, Benda will return to talk about prairie history.
At 2:30, Ellis will step in as a storyteller for “Hummingbird Tales.” Brad Schwamberger will talk about “T-Rex, Turkeys and Hummingbirds” at 3:30 pm. Throughout the afternoon, from noon to 4 pm, kids will be able to get crafty with bluebird and wren house kits.
A dinner theater experience will also be offered and will be catered by PL. Johnson’s, Reservations are required. For reservations, call (309) 696-1017.
A complete list of activities and times can be found on the event flyer.
