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Creating A Bird Sanctuary In Your Yard
March 5, 2005 | sweetliberty

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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Link to previous thread:
Attention Bird Gardening Enthusiasts


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Gardening; Hobbies; Outdoors; Pets/Animals; Reference
KEYWORDS: attractingbirds; backyardbirding; birdfeeders; birdgardening; birdhouses; birdlover; birdsanctuary; birdwatching; butterflygardens; gardening
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To: MattinNJ
Between this thread and the previous one, there has been a lot posted on the topic. I have the squirrels from hell, and I have gotten am getting a handle on it..
981 posted on 05/12/2005 7:33:19 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: GodBlessUSA

I sounded like Debbie-downer there :) LOL


982 posted on 05/12/2005 7:33:48 PM PDT by Dysart
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To: MattinNJ
I live in a rural area of Joisey (yes-they exist) Niced sized yard with a ton of trees that backs up to miles of protected land. I love Cardinals but can't seem to keep the squirrels (whom I like too) to stop eating their food.

Have you incorporated a baffle device between the feeder and the ground or the tree? This works for me. The squirrels now feed on the seed and nuts that always find the ground. They do just fine with that and watching them attempt to circumvent the baffle is great fun.
983 posted on 05/12/2005 7:45:33 PM PDT by Dysart
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To: Dysart
Hey Debbie Downer. LOL! You didn't sound like a downer :) There are so many trouble maker out there. I would be so crushed if Chickadees or any bird ever had trouble like that.

I have one house on a pole. The others I have on trees. I put a hole guard on for only Chickadees and Titmice but House wren can fit. I haven't had many interested takers. They like to be in a covering so yours sounds good. I haven't been lucky so I don't know if it's my placement of the houses.

I really put them up because I was hoping for Chickadees to stay. Although, my yard is so busy with birds I don't know if they even would.
984 posted on 05/12/2005 8:03:15 PM PDT by GodBlessUSA (US Troops, past, present and future, God Bless You and Thank You! Prayers said for our Heroes!)
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To: sweetliberty
You have Cardinal babies already?

Oh yes! Mama Cardinal has 2 or 3 male fledglings, and at least 1 female. (They kind of hang out together)

One of the males only has a couple of crest feathers....he looks like the birdy version of a *punk rocker*, LOL!

RE the woodpecker: I can't remember where I read it, but supposedly woodpeckers will screech by an insect to 'stun' it - maybe your woodpecker's breakfast was trying too hard to get away! :)

985 posted on 05/13/2005 9:18:59 AM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: MamaTexan

I am just sick about one of my Goldfinches and I can't imagine what happened to it, or what is wrong with him. He has a huge growth on the side of his neck. It is bigger than his head and neck. The only thing I can think of would be the bite of some awful spider or insect. Are birds plagued by such things. I know they can get bitten, just not sure how much of a problem it is. I doubt he will survive. I hope it isn't anything contagious.


986 posted on 05/13/2005 5:33:28 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: sweetliberty
Oh my!

Lets see, a knot on the side of a birds neck could be explained by an insect bite, but I couldn't imagine what insect would crawl under a birds feathers or be able to bite through them, either.

Do birds have glands in their necks like people?

It could possibly be an abscess from a puncture wound (a beak during a mating squabble?) (an injury from a branch during a bad landing?). Abscesses are gross, but if it drains, he should be okay

Is he feeding/drinking normally, or is he in distress?

I'm just tossing around ideas.....I'll look and see if growths are common. If I find anything, I'll let you know!

987 posted on 05/13/2005 5:52:36 PM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: MamaTexan

Yes, he was eating normally, but he obviously doesn't have full range of motion in his neck.


988 posted on 05/13/2005 5:56:32 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: sweetliberty
It's very good that he's eating. Another though occurred to me.

The feather shaft comes up through the skin on a bird. An ingrown feather shaft could conceivably cause a lump...like the same ones people get from ingrown hairs.

I haven't found anything yet except a couple of extremely scientific papers on 'Lymphoproliferative disease', which would have to be a glandular disorder, but now I'm trying to track down a description of it NOT written in *biobabble* .

989 posted on 05/13/2005 6:06:56 PM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: MamaTexan

Thanks. I've never run across anything about such things in the reading I've done, but birds do get infrected with things such as West Nile, from mosquito bites, so it makes sense that they might also be vulnerable to other small pests that can do big damage....mites, bees, fleas, ticks. But some of your other ideas make sense too. Maybe these things happen more frequently than we realize and we just notice them because we're watching the birds more closely.


990 posted on 05/13/2005 6:12:32 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: sweetliberty
Maybe these things happen more frequently than we realize and we just notice them because we're watching the birds more closely.

Very good point.

Like I said, the fact he's eating is good. It means whatever the problem is, it's outside his digestive tract, not inside it.

I'm not up to date with West Nile in birds, but if memory serves, it manifests itself more as a general, over all sickness than a visible symptom like swelling.

You can rule out a glandular disease, too. Apparently, Goldfinches have what's called a 'glandular stomach', not glands in their necks like humans. :)

991 posted on 05/13/2005 6:49:55 PM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: MamaTexan

I wasn't suggesting it was West Nile, just using that as an example of things birds can get from insects.


992 posted on 05/13/2005 6:52:44 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: sweetliberty
Oh, no. I didn't mean you were! :)

Birds can catch all kinds of things from bug bites, that's true....I was just brainstorming the differences between what you had said about you Goldfinch and what the symptoms are for West Nile.

993 posted on 05/13/2005 7:32:28 PM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: HairOfTheDog

Someone transported some of your red squirrels to Bakersfield, CA. They live on a golf course; and PG&E personnel hate them because they use the wires as their own EL.


994 posted on 05/13/2005 7:34:22 PM PDT by bannie (The government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend upon the support of Paul.)
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To: MamaTexan

I enjoyed your thread. Beautiful pictures of beautiful birds! Thank you.


995 posted on 05/13/2005 8:03:16 PM PDT by bannie (The government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend upon the support of Paul.)
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To: bannie; sweetliberty
We do have some amazing pictures here, don't we?

Sweetliberty is actually the originator of this thread, as well as the one before it.

This one has already gotten almost a thousand replies. WOW!

We sure are a chatty bunch!

LOL!

996 posted on 05/13/2005 8:09:25 PM PDT by MamaTexan (I am not a legal entity, nor am I a *person* as defined and/or created by 'law'!!)
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To: MamaTexan

:*)


997 posted on 05/13/2005 8:15:54 PM PDT by bannie (The government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend upon the support of Paul.)
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To: sweetliberty

put me on your bird ping list please :-)


998 posted on 05/13/2005 8:30:54 PM PDT by fnord (497 1/2 feet of rope ... I just carry it)
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To: fnord

Will do.


999 posted on 05/13/2005 8:39:26 PM PDT by sweetliberty (Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.)
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To: sweetliberty

Green Jay

1,000 posted on 05/13/2005 11:00:16 PM PDT by rustbucket
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