Posted on 03/05/2005 8:07:37 AM PST by sweetliberty
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As it turned out, the previous thread on this topic generated a lot of interest and several people recommended doing it as a regular thread, so here is the second installment.
How you go about creating a bird sanctuary in your yard, or outdoor space, will depend on a number of givens, some which can modified, and others over which you have no control. One of these is geographical location or climate zone. If you live in the Colorado Rockies, you are not going to attract Cardinals, no matter how many black oil sunflower seeds you put out, and if you're on a beach in Florida, it's a pretty safe bet that there will be no snow buntings visiting your yard, the cornucopia of insects notwithstanding. Of course, if global warming keeps encroaching on us, we may soon find Alaska overrun with Parrots and Flamingos, but, I digress.
Within any given area, there are a variety of habitats, so no matter what your specific location, it is possible to vastly increase the types and numbers of birds in your immediate environment by modifying your habitat to make it more bird friendly to a wider array of birds native to your region.
Another "given" is your available space. If you live in a cottage in the woods by a stream, you will obviously have a lot more options available to you than if you live in an urban apartment with nothing more than a small porch or balcony. Of course, I think the majority of us live somewhere between those extremes. The point is, even if you have nothing more than a porch, you can still make it bird friendly, thereby increasing your enjoyment of these highly entertaining creatures. If you don't even have so much as a porch, I would suggest moving!
The purpose of this thread is to share ideas for maximizing our outdoor spaces to make them appealing to birds and butterflies, to share our experiences and knowledge or expertise, photos and resources. The discussion is pretty free-flowing and may expand to include gardening, landscaping and related topics. The direction the thread takes will really be up to the FReepers who post on it. We can focus on a different topic every week or two, or just keep it open and casual, updating the thread periodically. The main thing is that we learn and have fun.
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I took this one in the yard yesterday evening (yes, it DOES need mowing...badly). This bunny is a tiny little thing. He is much smaller than he appears in this picture. He really does let me get this close. I've been feeding him graham crackers. He loves them.
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I think the Mockers must have a nest very nearby. I just watched one this morning take on 3 huge crows. I decided he needed a little help and went out and ran the crows off. It was funny though. He was swooping down and giving them a good peck on the head, one right after the other. They were just kind of ducking their heads and going on about what they were doing. I would guess that crows are not above raiding mocker nests, and I'd hate to see that happen. These crows put in an appearance every morning, but they don't hang around too long.
He is so pretty!
I'm expecting to see mocker and Cardinal juveniles soon. So far I have seen the Downys and the 
Grackles' nasty brats. With some of them, it is hard to tell.
Well, gotta run. Time for work. Y'all have a great day.
I already had an old 100-300 mm Canon zoom lens that I now use on the 20D for my telephotos. With the 1.6 times multiplication the camera does, that translates into a 160 to 480 mm lens.
This weighs much less than the 170-500 mm Sigma zoom lens I had been using for bird pictures with my old Cannon EOS film camera, making it very easy to transport and carry around. That old 100-300 mm Canon lens cost about $600 when new some 10 years ago.
Unfortunately the old Sigma zoom lens does not work with the 20D, but it is possible Sigma could rechip the lens so that it would. That would give me an 800 mm lens.
There are no bunnies in my yard, but here's another shot with the camera while on vacation. A vermilion flycatcher.
The vermilion flycatcher was in West Texas. At the same place, we also kept seeing this cute little unknown bird we started calling "rosy-bottom" for obvious reasons. Turned out that it was Mrs. Flycatcher herself.
Here was a shot we took from the car in Arizona. I cropped the photo a good bit to zoom in on the birds. This is a red tailed hawk and two young on the nest (one sitting up, one lying down). The adult is probably looking for that bunny up-thread.
I don't take pictures, but am growing birdies in my light kit under the patio roof.
Beware the parenting Crow: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1420326/posts
Seems the Mockers spent all that time building a nest and have left. The strange thing is I don't even hear them singing any more. It's very odd in my backyard, I don’t hear any birds singing most of the time now. I assumed many were nesting but the birds are not visiting any longer with exception of a few.
One morning I saw what I thought was a Flicker fly away. But didn't see the gold under wings but there was a spot of white on the underside of tail feathers. It probably wasn’t a Flicker. I saw a predator 2 times take after a bird but didn't recognize this bird. It was a quick view.
Hawk or maybe even an Owl. It's a bummer because this time only comes once a year. I miss the birds! I want to see those little juveniles come too. :(
Here’s some pictures of the garden :) It’s only just starting now to bloom. It was cold in May.
I have to clean up those messy cuttings next to this rose. :)
Peony
Your pictures are gorgeous! Your being modest! :)
Isn't it funny to watch the Mockers chase those large Crows!
It's fun sharing the Garden. Thanks for indulging me. :)
LOL! Could be. Great picture. Great luck to spot such a view.
Love your pictures of your Garden!
How sad that your birds are gone, but it would be sadder to see them picked off by a predator. They will return. My population is lower now than it was, probably because of the d**n Grackles running off everything in sight when I'm not around. I'm finding that I'm less enthusisatic about keeping the feeders filled. I don't buy all those special goodies to lay out a buffet for those awful creatures. The only thing that even keeps me using the platform feeder at all right now is the jays. They love their peanuts, almonds and walnut pieces that I put out for them and I can't think of any way to put them someplace that would make them accessible to the jays, but not the Grackles. They have ruined my enjoyment of my yard though and I put out much less than before and try to watch it until the jays have had a chance to eat. I hate those nasty birds!
Your garden is looking beautiful!
Thank You, Mrs. N! :)
I know how frustrating the Grackles can be. Like the Starlings are here. I had to stop putting nuts out for a while also. I'm not paying that money to feed the pests either. :)
Thanks! The hard work is starting to pay off. I just hope the June beetles, that will be here soon, don't eat it all up. :)
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