In my experience, the bug guards work fairly well, and the birds 
do figure it out. But the bug guards get moldy more quickly than the 
rest of the feeder and are more difficult to clean. I finally tossed 
them out, deciding they were more trouble than they were worth. 
Having a water-filled ant trap on the feeder is more important in my 
yard than trying to keep bees out.

June

--
June Tveekrem
Columbia, MD
tweekiebird |AT| southernspreadwing.com

On 7/16/2010 8:05 AM, Rick Sussman wrote:
> I find that the bug guards don't really work, as I always get bumblebees feeding deep into the ports anyway. They may keep the bees from actually entering the ports, so I do use them. But, they are almost always the hardest parts to keep clean, and they seem to get moldy fster than any other feeder parts as well. I just cleaned mine in a bleach/water solution again last night when I filled one of the feeders.
>
>
>
> Rick Sussman
> Woodbine,MD
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bill&  Carol<>
> To: 
> Sent: Fri, Jul 16, 2010 8:51 am
> Subject: [MDOSPREY] Hummer Feeder Question
>
>
> I just "upgraded" my hummer feeder to a Humzinger 12 oz. model, as my old 8
> uncer got too shopworn.  Included in the new box were some little plastic
> bug guards" that fit over the inside of the feeding ports.  They are
> llegedly to stop the bugs, but are supposed to let the tongue of the bird
> e unaffected.  The hole looks pretty tight to me, but I put them on and put
> ut the feeder.  It seemed to me that the first visitor flitted from port to
> ort a bit, but seemed eventually to feed for a few seconds.  Has anybody
> ad any experience with these things?  Do they actually work?  Should I
> emove them?  Any on or off line advice appreciated.
>
> Thanks
> Bill Moody
> Lexington Park, MD.
>