I'm just too doggone tired to read much online, and look forward to a quieter pace when I can get caught up on how everyone's doing. But I have the SILLIEST birds here, and thought, only gardeners could truly appreciate this! First, there is the towhee who has declared war on my son's bedroom window. Every morning, when the light is such that he can't see in, this bird attacks the window with great vigour and determination. Does he feel threatened by the mirrored towhee, or jealous of it's lovely surroundings? I have no clue, but it's there, every morning, much to my son's dismay. Another towhee perches outside my living room window. He flies over to the window, presses himself against it, flutters his wings and pecks at the window as he slides down, until he gets caught in the window screen. I have also acquired three Davie's Squirrels, who love to feast on corn I scatter around the bird-feeder station in the backyard. They run up under my kitchen window, where I can see them clearly while washing dishes, and snuffle around in the leaves. I'm SO lucky to live where I do!
What would we ever do without our wildlife? I'm fascinated by a family of sparrowhawks we have visiting at the moment. I think gardening goes hand in hand with our love of nature. :-D
We live in the country, so I don't feed the birds all year round. There is an over abundence of natural foods for them in the summer and fall. Well I was a little late getting the bird feeder ready this year. I feed a mix of 1/2 black oiled sunflower seeds and cracked corn. I mix it 50/50. Well the food was in the feeder for 2 days and not a bird went to it. In fact there was a lack of birds anywhere in the yard. Fro. morning I was looking out the front window and I see all kinds of birds zippin around the front yard. So I went to the back porch and looked at the feeder and they had found it. There were about 30 birds hanging onto the feeder! They toss some of the corn onto the ground and the doves get that. There were chicadees, cardinals, nuthatches, ladderback wood peckers and titmice in the feeders. Twas a pretty rowdy bunch of birds!
I don't feed the birds year round either, but I just filled it for the beginning of the winter season. 3 days and nothing had found it yet. Yesterday a pair of Blue Jays found it, so it's a matter of time before other birds want some too. The cat has re-discovered her place in the window to watch them. I don't let her outside so the birds are safe, but they sure keep her amused!
I put a feeder up a few days ago. No one has found it yet, but I can hear the crows arguing amongst themselves out there this morning. They may have found squirrels eating the seed I spilled on the ground. Crows don't share well. They probably run with scissors too.
I have the heads of my sunflowers out but don't entice the birds to come much as there is so many cats around I'm afraid for them.I love birds to much to ask them to their death.I have a place out on the south side of my house its a wooded area and I'm trying to clear it of small brush so I can make it an area for the birds and hang feeders from the limbs away from the cats.
I truely enjoy my squirrels i have one in particular that I ca Kamikize he loves to chatter until he gets 5 or 6 cats interested and then play catch me if you can as he runs almost into reach and then back. This goes on until he or the cats get bored. I told Sharon with as many cats as are there one day his kuck will run out
I've counted towhees, chickadees, juncos, flickers, some little brown bird, and three squirrels. There are quite alot of birds in the field next to me, and yesterday a red-tailed hawk, biggest I've ever seen, was checking out the lunch menu! Lots of rabbits this year too, but I'm VERY happy the skunk that was moving in on my cabin/greenhouse has moved on. Think he got tired of having his front door blocked by rocks (sometimes I'm very grateful for the rocks out here!)
Myhusband feeds year round - more heavily in the winter. Finches, bluejays, cardinals, woodpecker and I don't know what else. His feeders are placed so he can watch out of his workshop window.
