Every September · Rockport-Fulton, Texas
The Hummingbird Festival
Millions of hummingbirds descend on Rockport every September for one reason: they need fuel before crossing the Gulf of Mexico. Your backyard feeder becomes a pit stop on the most audacious migration journey in nature.
The Annual Rockport-Fulton Hummingbird Festival
Every September, Rockport and Fulton host the Hummingbird Festival — a weekend celebration that has grown into one of the premier birding events in Texas. What started as a small local gathering has become a destination event drawing birders, wildlife photographers, and nature enthusiasts from across North America.
The festival features guided field trips, expert speakers, photography workshops, vendors, and a general atmosphere of shared obsession with tiny, iridescent birds that weigh less than a nickel and can fly non-stop across the Gulf of Mexico.
But the festival is really just the organized cherry on top. The real show happens everywhere in Rockport and Fulton for the entire month of September — at every feeder, in every garden, along every coastal brush line. The birds don’t care about the festival calendar. They just need to eat.
When Is the Festival?
The Hummingbird Festival is typically held the third weekend of September. Check the Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce website for exact dates each year. We recommend visiting the entire last two weeks of September for the best hummingbird numbers.
Why Is Rockport So Special for Hummingbirds?
The Last Stop Before the Gulf
Rockport sits at the funnel point where the Texas coast narrows toward the Mexican border. Hummingbirds heading south have to cross the Gulf of Mexico — 500 miles of open water. They need every calorie they can find before that crossing. Rockport is the last gas station before the ocean.
Perfect Habitat
The coastal brush, live oak mottes, and native flowering plants of the Coastal Bend provide ideal stopover habitat. Combined with thousands of local feeders maintained specifically for migration season, Rockport offers hummingbirds exactly what they need: flowers, insects, and sugar water in abundance.
The September Convergence
Multiple species converge on Rockport at the same time. Ruby-throated from the east, Rufous from the west, resident Buff-bellied from the south. In a good September at a well-stocked feeder, you can see 5+ hummingbird species in a single morning sitting.
Hummingbird Species You’ll See in Rockport
Five species regularly appear during migration season, with the possibility of rarities. Here’s what to look for.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Archilochus colubris
By far the most common. Adult males have a brilliant iridescent red throat that looks black in shadow. The only hummingbird that breeds east of the Mississippi.
Rufous Hummingbird
Selasphorus rufus
Fiery orange-red males and green females. Notoriously feisty — they will chase every other hummingbird off your feeder. One of the longest migrations of any bird relative to body size. Increasingly common in Rockport.
Buff-bellied Hummingbird
Amazilia yucatanensis
Rockport's year-round resident hummingbird — the only one that stays all winter. Rich buff belly, green back, red bill with black tip. A Texas specialty that birders travel specifically to see.
Black-chinned Hummingbird
Archilochus alexandri
Males show a purple-black throat with a purple lower band. Often confused with Ruby-throated but look for the slightly longer bill and pumping tail.
Broad-tailed Hummingbird
Selasphorus platycercus
Males produce a distinctive metallic trill with their wing feathers in flight. Rose-red gorget. More common at higher elevations but regular in Rockport during fall migration.
How Rockport Locals Set Up for Migration
Ask any longtime Rockport resident about September and they’ll tell you the same thing: the feeders go up in August and they don’t come down until October. During peak migration, a single feeder in a good yard might host 50–100 individual hummingbirds per day.
The local secret is consistency. Keep feeders clean (change nectar every 2–3 days in September heat — it ferments fast), keep them full, and put them in a location where you can watch from a comfortable distance. Hummingbirds are creatures of habit; they’ll return to the same feeder multiple times per hour.
The Simple Nectar Recipe
- • 1 part white granulated sugar
- • 4 parts water
- • Boil briefly, cool completely before filling
- • Never use red dye — the feeder is red enough
- • Never use honey, artificial sweeteners, or brown sugar
Multiple hummingbirds swarming a feeder at a Rockport home in September
Photo coming soon
🛍️ Need feeder supplies?
Hummingbird Company in Rockport carries premium feeder mix, locally-made feeders, and everything you need to set up a proper migration station.
Shop Hummingbird Company →What to Expect at the Festival
Field Trips
Guided birding excursions to private gardens, Goose Island, Connie Hagar Sanctuary, and other prime spots — led by local expert birders.
Expert Speakers
Ornithologists, wildlife photographers, and migration researchers speaking on hummingbird biology, behavior, and conservation.
Photography Workshops
Hands-on sessions for photographing hummingbirds in flight — from beginner basics to advanced high-speed flash techniques.
Vendor Hall
Optics, feeders, native plants, bird books, and local art — including, of course, the Hummingbird Company.
Banding Demonstrations
Watch licensed bird banders capture, measure, band, and release hummingbirds up close — an intimate look at migration science.
Local Food & Music
Rockport-Fulton celebrates with local food vendors, live music, and the warm hospitality of a small Texas coastal town.
Plan Your September Visit
The Hummingbird Festival fills up Rockport accommodations fast. Book your stay early — and let us know you’re coming so we can send you the local tips that make the difference.