Creating A Bird Sanctuary In Your Yard

March 5, 2005 | sweetliberty

[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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Link to previous thread: Attention Bird Gardening Enthusiasts

[sweetliberty]

"I used to get chickadees and nuthatches until these darned overgrown pigeons kept showing up on my porch"

See Cheri, it could be worse. LOL! You could always join us for your "unique" bird fighting birdwatching experience.

[sweetliberty]

Yes, it is.

[MamaTexan]

I love and spoil them

LOL! Spoil them ROTTEN you mean? :)

[MamaTexan]

Oh, well aren't you just full of good cheer today? Did you shoot that groundhog yet?

ROFLMAO!

[sweetliberty]

I finally got a shot of a Titmouse snatching a peanut, but again, I wasn't quite quick enough to get the shot I wanted, so all I got was this flying blur with the outline of a peanut. LOL!

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[andyandval]

Ohhh...I know how ya feel. That is really funny.

[meowmeow]

Thanks for the ping. We just got back from a vacation to Florida. My in-laws have a pair of sandhill cranes that frequent their yard. Now those are some backyard birds! The male was almost as tall as me!

[sweetliberty]

"The male was almost as tall as me!"

Wow. That's a good sized bird, but what does she feed them? Aren't they fish eaters?

[.38sw]

Well, yes, it could be worse. Actually, I've seen turkeys in the neighborhood, trotting up the sidewalk a few blocks from our home. I don't see them much, maybe the coyotes got them.

Have you been on the DD threads at all? I posted about my kitty, Maia - we had to put her down on Friday night. Man, I still look for her in her usual places. I sure miss her cute little face. :(

[sweetliberty]

No, I haven't been there in a few days. I am so sorry about Maia. That is such a painful decision.

*HUGS*

[.38sw]

Yeah, it was, but it was unavoidable. We had hoped that when the time came, we could put her down at home, but it wasn't to be. Well, she isn't suffering any more.

[sweetliberty]

"Well, she isn't suffering any more."

Yeah, but it's still very hard. They become so much a part of us.

[GodBlessUSA]

Excellent shot of Nuthatch! You got a shot of your Redheaded Woodpecker visitor too! It's close enough to see him! Sometimes, birds aren't the easiest to photograph. I sure would love the opportunity to see him in person someday!

You had a great day with the birds!

[GodBlessUSA]

Hi MamaTexan
How are you today?

Yes, I do spoil them rotten. Sometimes, I'll have a plate of fruit to take out to them and my husband will say aw, you made that for me. I say, nope, it's for my birds. LOL :)

Hubby's going back to TX in another week or so. I'll have to check out the weather in Dallas. He raved about some steak house he ate at in Dallas. I think he's volunteering to go now just to go to Steak Houses,LOL.

[sweetliberty]

It was a beautiful day...warm and sunny. I was able to have the windows open and wear shorts, even walk around barefooted outdoors, but it sure made me realize how much I need to do in the yard, and some of it is going to take some real creativity, especially that view thing. Besides, I'd really like to discourage the little hooligans kids in the trailer park across the road from thinking the corner of my yard is a good place to hang out this year.

[sweetliberty]

Oops, posted that last one a bit too quick. I meant to add this:

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[meowmeow]

They have a big pond in the back yard (complete with requisite Florida alligator) and the birds go there to feed. All their backyard birds are big - herons, ibis, various creatures I've never seen before. I love sitting safely behind the screened in lanai big-bird watching. Some of them are also really loud. One morning, something was screaming like a banshee back there at about 5am.

[MamaTexan]

so all I got was this flying blur with the outline of a peanut. LOL!

ROFL! Poor little titmouse...flying along, minding his own business when a killer peanut leaped from its bowl and attacked!!!

[MamaTexan]

I think he's volunteering to go now just to go to Steak Houses,LOL.

There's probably enough to keep him busy for awhile!

[beaureguard]

My next project is some bat boxes to hopefully attract some fruit bats, which eat mosquitos. Good luck. I tried that a couple of years ago - the wasps LOVE those little boxes. And, as I understand, you can't spray wasp killer in the boxes, because that'll drive off the bats.