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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Well, I guess I had an advantage with the owls. We had a pet Barred Owl when I was a kid. It had been rescued by a hunter and somehow my great-grandma, who took care of everything, ended up with it. His name was Pete. He had a large cage in the back yard and I used to go out and visit him first thing every morning. I guess I was about 7 or 8 when he died.
First, Happy New Year everyone:)!
Second, I brought home a thistle feeder about 20 minutes ago....LOL....what an uproar it is causing among the finches:) I've always had to laugh, altho they are one of the smallest birds to come to my feeders they seem to reign supreme:). Now with the thistle feeder it has caused a war among themselves:). I've been watching the battle to see who gets to eat, and once one manages to get a spot he/she is there forever!!! How can such a small bird eat so much. And I swear you can hear/see them smacking thier lips over the thistle. I guess it is as the bag says, a finches favorite seed:)
Becky
Cool, a bird thread.
Cant wait till spring when my 4-5 hummingbirds come back.
My thistle feeder
Becky
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LOL, why do they want to hang upside down??
Becky
The holes are below the perches instead of above them. Apparently it doesn't bother the Goldfinches and Pine Siskins, but it baffles squirrels and House Finches.
We had an upside-down finch feeder at work. It was hilarious watching the sparrows trying to get the seeds out. One sparrow finally learned how to swing around the perch, grab a seed, and come back up.
The last stragglers leave around the first week of October. I worried this year about what they would be able to find down on the coast after the hurricane before they made the big hop across the Gulf to Yucatan. Did the best I could to fatten them up though.
FYI: We had a real dry summer and because I dont water the lawn it turns brown.
Point of interest. I've had a juvenile yellowbelly sapsucker hanging out around my feeders. Funny thing tho. The book says they like mixed seed, sunflower seeds, peanuts, you know the regular stuff. But he never eats that stuff. He eats the peanut butter I have spread on several trees. I read that some birds like it, so I put some on several tree trunks. The birds that the book say like it don't show alot of interest in it, but this sapsucker just seems to love it. Other then getting a drink out of the birdbath the peanut butter is the only thing he seems interested in.
Becky
It's funny. I don't think my birds read the books. I have read several places, including here, how much various birds like both peanut butter AND jelly, but I have yet to be able to coax ANY of my birds to eat either.
I wrote earlier about the Humming bird from Hell that guarded the feeder and the virbunum bush.
It has happened again!!
This time it is a Myrtle Warbler that has claimed the leather Leaf Virbunum as it 's own. The bush is base for all the birds coming to the feeders. The chickadees and the titmice fly back and forth and back and forth.
Before the warbler came there might be 8 ot 10 birds sharing the bush and the feeders. Now however, the warbler works diligently to chase them away. They always come back to a different branch.
Even the cardinals give the warbler respect. I'm going to keep a close eye on the sapsucker that actually feeds on the bush. A sapsucker has lived in this bush forever and I wonder if the warbler will respect the permanent resident.
bump
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Lovely!Thanks.
I heard Cedar-Waxwings, were in my area last March. I went looking for them. Didn't get to see one, yet.... They are so incredibly beautiful. I since planted berry plants, shrubs and tree, for them. The plants need to mature. I would love to attract them to the yard also. I'd love to see them anywhere. :)
Thank you. About a hundred Cedar Waxwings come by once a year for one day to take what is left of any holly berries - no matter what the local Mockingbirds have to say about it.
Thanks, Lady!
:)
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