BACKYARD SECRET – NANDINA BERRIES ARE POISONOUS TO BIRDS

Apr12

       During the spring, the urge to plant flowers, trees and shrubs is high.  For those of us that are trying to enhance our yards for wildlife we are on the lookout for plants that are attractive and benefit wildlife.  With that in mind, sometimes you find a plant that is beautiful and provides food for wildlife.

       A plant that appears to fit the bill is nandina.  It has dark green, evergreen foliage and bears a crop of shiny red berries. As such, the plant seems to add a touch of beauty in the winter.  In truth, you should avoid it.

       One reason why it should keep out of your yard is that it is on the Georgia Invasive Plant List.  That means it spreads across the countryside and thereby threatens native plants.

       The second reason is that its berries are toxic to birds. It seems the berries contain cyanide compounds that produce hydrogen cyanide.  Typically, when a bird eats a small amount (1-2 berries) of the berries it will not die.  The berries, however, pose a greater threat to cedar waxwings.  The reason for this is they often gorge themselves on the red berries.  This is especially true when other food sources are scarce.

       Keep this in mind when you are considering possibly adding nandina to your landscape.  This is a case of where what you do not plant is as important as what you do not.

BACKYARD SECRET – FEMALE RUBYTHROATS ARE NOW IN GEORGIA

Apr8

         My wife and I live in Monroe County just north of the Fall Line.  Each year we anxiously await the arrival of hummingbirds that have spent the winter south of the border.  This year the first male was seen in Monroe County March 7, however, most folks did not see one until March 16-19.

       Female rubythroats are always seen days after the males arrive.  This past week the first females were reported here.  My wife and I, however, have not seen one yet.

      With that in mind, both males and females are obviously flying about the southern half of the state. Chances are, if you live north of Monroe County, there is a good chance you have already seen a male ruby-throated hummingbird at your feeder, although those of you that live in the northern portion of the state may not have seen a hummingbird yet. 

       If you have already seed a male, be on the lookout for your first female hummer.  Since I have no knowledge of the arrival dates for those of you that live in North Georgia, I would appreciate it if you let me know what the arrival dates of both males and females in your neck of the woods.

SINGING BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER ADD TO THE PLEASURE OF MORNING WALKS

Apr5

       I try to walk around my large backyard every morning.  The walks provide me with a chance to get some exercise while keeping abreast of the plants and animals that inhabit my backyard.  For the past few weeks, the singing of up to three black-and-white warblers gave made these treks extra special.

       The black-and-white warbler’s distinctive black and white striped plumage  make it easy to identify.  Most folks, however, are not familiar with its song.  Some say the high-pitched call sounds much like a squeaky wheel—it goes something like this  weesy-weesy-weesy-weesy. 

       If you cannot identify this song, all you have to do to familiarize yourself with it is pull up the Merlin bird identification app on your cellphone.  There you find more than half a dozen examples of this unusual call.  Then the next time you hear it you will know the name of the feathered songster singing it.

       Lately I have heard up to three calling in my backyard at the same time.  When I hear them accompanied by song calls of ruby-crowned kinglets, white-throated and chipping sparrows, pileated woodpeckers, Carolina wrens, tufted titmice, Carolina chickadees and others, I am reluctant to go back inside for a cup of coffee.

       Many of us only hear or see black-and-white warblers on migration  during their spring and fall migrations, some actually nest in Georgia.   Most of these birds breed in the northern half of the state, however, from time to time, some nest below the Fall Line.     

       The vast majority of these migrants spend the winter far south of Georgia.  It is interesting to note that some winter in the Peach State.  One place where I often see black-and-white warblers in winter is Georgia is  Veterans State Park near Cordele.

       I am hoping that birds I have been listening to decide to spend the summer in my backyard.  Probably this will not happen.  In the meantime, I will continue to enjoy there serenades as long as I can,

       Perhaps black-and-white warblers are singing in your backyard right now.  All it takes to see if that is the case, step outside your backdoor and listen.  You may be pleasantly surprised.

      

      

BACKYARD SECRET – PLANTING GROUPS OF PLANTS BENEFIT HUMMINGBIRDS AND OTHER POLLINATORS

Apr1

     

        If you are looking for a simple way to benefit hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators, plant nectar plants in groups of the kind.  You will find that mass plantings enhance the beauty of your yard and makes it easier for these valuable backyard neighbors to locate plants bearing nectar. 

       With that in mind, plant no less than 3-5 of the same variety together.  If have enough room for larger plantings, masses of plants measuring two to three are even better.

       I hope you will try this simple technique this year.  I suspect that, if you take this advice, the pollinators will love it and you will wonder why you have not adopted this gardening trip before.

BACKYARD SECRET – ROBINS FIND WORMS BY SOUND

Mar29

        If you have ever watched American robins hunt for worms on your lawn, you have probably wondered whether the worm hunters located juicy worms by sight or sound. 

       Well, researchers have cracked the mystery to this age-old mystery.  The birds locate the worms by sound. Once they find a worm, they often tilt the head to direct their strike at the hidden meal.

BACKYARD SECRET – TIME SPENT WITH NATURE CAN BENEFIT OUR MENTAL HEALTH

Mar25

       Jay Maddock, a professor of public health at Texas A&M University, reports that spending time with nature can have a positive effect on our mental health.  According to Maddock, “Spending even a short amount of time in nature has been shown to improve mood and reduce stress.”  He goes to say, “There are noticeable benefits in as little as 10 minutes at a time and some emerging evidence that two hours a week is beneficial to mental health.”

BACKYARD SECRET – BUTTERFLIES ARE SOMETIMES SMALLER IN THE SPRING

Mar23

       Recently my wife and I were walking about our backyard on a recent March after noon we noticed that one of our native azaleas was in full bloom.  When we stopped to admire the beautiful blossoms displayed by the large native azalea, an eastern tiger swallowtail flew in and began nectaring at the shrub’s stunning blooms.  As we watched the butterfly feed, we both noticed that it was much smaller than the tigers we normally encounter.  This begged the question, “Why is this individual so small?”

       One possible reason for this is eastern tiger swallowtails overwinter as pupae in a chrysalis.  If a butterfly emerges earlier than normal due to unseasonably warm weather, it may be smaller because it pupated before reaching its normal size.

BACKYARD SECRET – BLUE-GRAY GNATCATERS ARE NOT FEEDER BIRDS

Mar18

      Regardless how hard we try, we cannot entice all of the birds that visit our yards to dine at our bird feeders.  One such bird is the blue-gray gnatcatcher.

      This past week my wife spotted a blue-gray gnatcatcher feeding among the green leaves of a coral honeysuckle that grows beside our driveway. Today, while walking to the mailbox I spotted a blue-gray gnatcatcher in the same place.  The bird did not flush until I was about 10 feet away.

BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER

      This provided with a great view of the bird’s clean blue-gray plumage that almost seemed to shine in the morning sunlight as it flew to the bare branches of a nearby tree. Once there, it did not remain motionless for long before it began flitting about in search in spiders and small insects.

    Since these birds do not visit feeders, if you want to attract them to your yard, you must offer the feathered sprites native trees and shrubs where they will be able to forage on caterpillars, spider and tiny insects.

BACKYARD SECRET – OFFER WHITE FEATHERS TO TREE SWALLOW

Mar15

          We are rapidly approaching the tree swallows nesting season for the tree swallow here in Georgia.  With that that in mind, if you find tree swallows attempting to build a nest in one of your nesting boxes, here is something that might considering doing to help tree swallows construct a nest.

          Tree swallows just love to incorporate white feathers in their nests.  Since such feathers can often be hard for the birds to locate, you can come to their aid by simply scattering some white feathers near their nesting box. Then sit back and wait.    Since the females do most of the nest building, there is a good chance you will see her fly down and gather some of the feathers to add to the nest.

          Even if tree swallows do not use the feathers, all is not lost.  A number of other birds will add them to their nests too.

BACKYARD SECRET – ADDING NESTING MATERIAL TO NEST BOXES CAN HELP ATTRACT BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES

Mar12

       If you have never been able to entice brown-headed nuthatches to nest in your nesting boxes, adding 1-3 inches of dry nesting material such as pine shavings, sawdust or wood chips to a nest box just might change your luck.

       I should note the only times brown-headed nuthatches have nested in my boxes is when I added nesting material.

       Who knows?  This simple technique might just work for you.