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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Sure does.
I saw this in our local paper this morning and thought it looked interesting. The book should be good reading for bird lovers.
Still have a pretty good variety 'round here....(even if the poor things sit around in the afternoon with there beaks hangin' open in this heat :)
We have two male ruby throats that constantly chase each other off the feeders, and at least one female is still here too.
Can't WAIT for the weather to cool off so I can start doing yard-work again. It's too hot out there for planting anything new or disturbing anything already growing.
I saw this in our local paper this morning and thought it looked interesting.
That does look interesting..... but not surprising.
After all, MAN fell from Grace in the Garden of Eden. The animals never did. :)
How is it in your neck 'o the woods, lady?
Need to change the hummer feeders this morning before I go in to work. Yes, it's bad enough that I have to work Saturday. I am not "required" to be there, but I AM required to get the work done, and there aren't enough hours in the week.
I forget where you're at in Texas. Not too near the Gulf coast are you. That's a menacing looking storm coming?
Good morning, y'all. How's everybody's birding coming along?
If you stuck a pin dead center on a map of the State of Texas, you'd come pretty close to where we're at.
Katrina's projected to hit Louisiana, but even if it hits Texas, we'll only get heavy thunderstorms and maybe a few tornadoes this far inland.
Thanks for this link. The book sounds terrific. I think it will also make an excellent gift for my sister. She's a birder too. I think a lot of birders have thought of this at one time. I know I have. I look forward to reading it!
Speaking of which, I saved a juv Mocker this week from drowning in my birdbath. He had apparently decided to plunge himself in deep to cool down, and discovered he couldn't swim. I just happened to look out my window to see what was happening out there...there he was, thrashing around! I scooped him up and set him on the ground. He tried to fly away but his wings were too soaked, so he hopped onto a chair, then a fence, and on into a tree.
It was too hot to do anything outside. We are also have a drought here. I put the sprinklers out in the garden beds and the birds love it. We really need rain. Western LI gets it once in a while but it always misses us and I can see it starting to affect trees, etc.
I still have Mockingbirds here. I enjoy them so. Redbelly is bringing 2nd nest of juveniles for suet. I can tell you, between the starlings and grackles I'm ready to scream so loud you might hear me someday. So good to hear from you! :)
After all, MAN fell from Grace in the Garden of Eden. The animals never did. MamaTexan your comment put a big, :) on my face.
We only get the Ruby-throats, too, but I just love them. It would be nice to have other varieties, but I'm happy with what we have. What we lack in variety, we make up in numbers.
Oh my. Good thing you were there to save him. I remember reading that birds can drown if there is more than 3 inches of water in a birdbath. Mine is one of the flat-bottomed ones, so it is the same depth throughout...about 2 inches.
ROFL! Was that the screeching noise I heard the other day?
Our cardinals are trying to repopulate the state...I think they're working on their 2nd or 3rd hatching this year.
One juvenile we're nicknamed 'Elvis'. He's bright red, but only has one pitiful crest-feather that falls over sideways at the slightest hint of breeze.
Good to hear from you, too!
I just recently went back to work full time.... MAN!
Having a job REALLY cuts back on my FReep-time :)
Here is a Red Bellied WP enjoying some watermelon on a sweltering day in August. Who knew RB WPs liked watermelon?
LOL!
As a general rule, our bird friends seem to be an opportunistic bunch!
I didn't realize Lesser Goldfinches like tiny, green cherry tomatoes until I saw them having breakfast in the garden one day. :)
Speaking of Woodpeckers, I haven't seen any of our Golden Fronts at the feeder recently. I've heard them though, so I figure they're gorging themselves on the humongous insects we have this time of year.
Hi Sweetliberty:
My hummers are still feeding like crazy at the feeder. It has cooled off here (finally). I have seen a couple of times a greenish yellow bird that I am presently trying to identify. I think it might be a tananger but I am not positive. It is bigger than a chickadee about the size of a titmouse but slimmer. I have only caught a quick look at it. It is close to the ground, clings to vertical stakes and seems to look for food in the red salvia and then it hides in the green leaves of a sugar maple tree. The hummer won't let it, or any other bird, sit in my Japanese Maple. She buzzes it until it leaves. Any ideas on what kind of bird it might be would be appreciated. Thanks.
LOL! Same here. Have lots of juveniles around.
"Having a job REALLY cuts back on my FReep-time"
Tell me about it! I just spent 7 1/2 hours of my Saturday working...and still have more I have to do tomorrow. I might try to take a day off during the coming week.
He certainly seems to be enjoying himself. Great picture.
I don't know what your bird might be right off hand. I would suggest browsing a field guide and see if anything looks familiar. It is sometimes easy to miss details of bird species if you only see them briefly, and much of the time, I'm finding, bird identification is in the details. Good luck with your quest. Let us know what you find out.
Thanks for the ping.
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