Archives

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 – A WAY TO KEEP WATER OUT OF NEST BOXES

Mar1

         Here is a simple way to help keep rain out of nesting boxes.  If a nestbox is properly built (with an overhanging roof), in most cases, rain is kept from entering the box.  However, wind-blown rain is a different matter.  While it is impossible to always keep this type of rain out of boxes, you can reduce the chance of this happening by simply erecting a box so that the opening to the nestbox faces away from the prevailing wind.

 

BACKYARD SECRET: DEALING WITH SQUIRRELS EATING SUET AT FEEDERS

Feb22

          If you are having a problem with gray squirrels eating more than their share of suet, here is something you might want to try.  Typically, squirrels prefer eating suet laced with peanut butter and peanuts.  If this is the case in your backyard, simply replace the peanut butter suet with plain suet. While birds will eat it, it seems that bushytails are not particularly fond of plain suet.  While this solution might not work in all backyards, this simple, inexpensive approach to this problem just might work for you.

EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES HAVE NOT ALWAYS BEEN SEEN AT GEORGIA FEEDERS

Feb18

          There are three exotic species of birds that can be seen at most Georgia birdfeeders.  These birds are the starling and house sparrow and Eurasian collard-dove.  While none of us were around when starlings and sparrows were introduced to the United States, if you were feeding birds during the 1980s, you probably remember when Eurasian collared dove first flew into your backyard.

          Supposedly, a bird breeder living in the Bahamas was burglarized in the 1970s. During the event Eurasian collared doves escaped their confinement.  Sometime thereafter during the same decade Eurasian collared-doves had leap-frogged to Florida.  By 1989 the birds were seen in as far north as Florida’s Lake Okeechobee.   In 1989 the collared doves were seen in North Florida.  The birds were spotted in South Georgia by 1998. In 2006, the birds had spread across the entire state except for extreme Northeast Georgia.

           When they visit feeders they most often dine on black oil sunflower seeds, corn mile and wheat.

          When I began feeding birds decades ago, I never thought I would see the likes of a Eurasian collard-dove at my feeders. While they rarely visit my feeders nowadays, I regularly see them perched on utility wires in cities and towns.

         If another exotic seed-eating bird appears in the United   States, there is a good chance it will suddenly appear at a backyard bird feeder.  Keep watching.

         

SUET AND BIRD PUDDINGS ARE NOT THE ONLY SOURCES OF FAT EATEN BY BIRDS

Feb11

       The use of animal fat by birds dates back at least to the 1890s. For example, historians tell us that in 1898 Florence Merriam Bailey and others were feeding animal fat to birds.  These bird early enthusiasts simply tacked raw suet to the trunks of trees. This practice continues to this day. 

       Several years ago, a good friend of mine conducted an experiment to try to determine whether birds prefer chunks of suet (fat found around the kidneys of cattle) to rendered suet.

       It is easy for us to believe that birds only obtain animal fat from raw suet, rendered suet and bird puddings.  Quite by accident several years ago, I found this is not the case.

       At the time, I made my discovery I was working at a checking station on the Rum Creek Wildlife Management Area. I was one of the folks that examined each deer harvested. These animals were examined under an open deer weighing shelter. After the deer were examined, chunks of deer fat were often left behind.

       One day during a deer hunt, I just happened to notice dark-eyed juncos were feeding on bits of deer fat had collected along the edge of the shelter along the edge of the shelter.

       I suspect that birds of been eating the fat found on dead animals of millions of years.  Dark-eyed juncos are not the only birds that have been known to eat the fat of dead animals.  The list of others that do the same are tufted titmice, wrens and woodpeckers. 

 

NORTHERN FLICKERS RARELY VISIT FEEDERS

Feb1

       If you have never seen a northern flicker at your bird feeders, you are not alone. I personally have never spotted at one at mine either; however, they infrequently visit my birdbath.  In spite of my inability of entice a flicker to my feeders, the Cornell University’s FeedWatch survey reveals that in some states, more than half those participating in the survey report  their feeders are visited annually by flickers. Even then the birds are not regular visitors throughout the entire winter.  Those folks that host them say they see rarely see more than one or two of the birds at a time.

       It seems that when they visit feeders, they most often dine on bird puddings are suet.  The list of some of the other foods eaten by flickers includes the likes of baked goods, peanuts, sunflower seeds, and millet.

       I hope you have enjoyed seeing flickers at your feeders.  Northern flickers are truly fascinating birds.

BACKYARD SECRET – TWO SEEDS WILL ATTRACT ALL OF THE SEED-EATING BIRDS THAT VISIT YOUR FEEDERS

Jan21

         For all practical purposes, white millet and black oil sunflower seeds will attract all of the seed-eating birds that you are likely to see at your feeders.  Birds such as sparrows (chipping, white-throated, fox, field, white-crowned, and song) dark-eyed juncos, mourning doves and eastern towhees all relish white millet. Even cardinals devour their fair share of these seeds.

       The long list of birds that prefer to dine on black oil sunflower seeds includes cardinals, house and purple finches, Carolina chickadees, white-breasted nuthatches, blue jays, red-headed and red-bellied, downy, and hairy woodpeckers, American goldfinches, and pine siskins.

       In order to attract these and other seedeaters offer seeds placed on or near the ground as well as elevated feeders.

CLEANING UP SUNFLOWER SEED HULLS IS A MUST

Jan18

       Sunflower seeds are favored by most of the birds that visit our backyard feeders.  The problem is that many birds such as cardinals and finches crack open the seeds at the feeder.  Consequently, in a short period of time the sunflower seed hulls build up below our feeders. These hulls need to be regularly removed.

      The hulls contain a chemical that will retard the growth of many plants. Consequently, if they are not removed you are left with a barren area directly beneath your feeder.

       In addition, they pose a health hazard to birds. The hulls become a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. Feeder birds come in contact with bacteria and fungi when they feed on the seeds that fall from the feeder. Many of these dangerous organisms can cause birds to become sick or even die. With that in mind, make a point of regularly raking up the hulls and disposing them in the trash.  By so doing, your feeding area will remain attractive, and you will reduce the chance that the birds using your feeders will become infected with a life-threatening disease.

      

BACKYARD SECRET – CANADA GEESE EAT BRADFORD PEARS

Jan12

          Canada geese have demonstrated that they are extremely adaptable. For example, they are able to live in urban and suburban areas.  In fact, in some parts of the state and country, they are more common living close the humans than they are in the wild.  For example, in Columbia County, my daughter and granddaughter often see them walking around Kroger parking lots, yards and swimming in small neighborhood ponds.

           In order to survive just outside our backdoors, the geese often have to alter their feeding habits.  In the subdivision where they live, Canada geese annually nest around the edge of a small pond located near the entrance to their subdivision.  As such, they often see adult geese leading their goslings across roads and even feeding on the lush grass blanketing yards.      

          In typical “wild” habitats, the birds graze on such foods as lush grasses, aquatic plants, seeds, corn and other grains left on the ground after crops have been harvested.  Never once had I ever heard of Canada geese eating the small fruit produced in Bradford pear trees.  Several weeks ago, that changed when granddaughter and daughter found Canada geese feeding on fallen fruit beneath Bradford pear trees located in their subdivision.

          It seems that late in the day, a small flock of Canada geese leave the small lake and walk across the entrance road to their subdivision.  Typically, the birds begin feeding on the fallen fruit littering the ground beneath a Bradford pear growing in a side yard on one side of the road.  Once they have eaten all they want at that location, the slowly cross the road and dine on the Bradford pears found in the yard across the street.  This has been going for several weeks.  Interestingly, this is the first year they have witnessed the odd feeding behavior. That begs the question, “Why now?”

          I suspect that the birds’ traditional foods are in short supply this year.  Consequently, they needed to locate other sources of foods.  I doubt that the geese would have fed on the small fruit earlier.   The fruits are more palatable since they have gone through several freezes and frosts that softened the fruit. 

          It seems that other wildlife species such as American robins and cedar waxwings will also dine on the pears during the winter.  It is obvious that Bradford pear fruit is not a preferred food. Instead, it is an emergency food. This is a food that wild critters rarely eat unless they have little else to eat to ward off starvation.  Even so, I would not have thought they would have turned to Bradford pears.

          If you have witnessed Canada goose eating Bradford pears or other unusual foods, please let me know.

THE 5-7-9 RULE DOESN’T WORK FOR BLOGGER

Jan4

      In my last blog for 2025, I wrote about the 5-7-9 rule.  These recommendations relate to the ideal location for a bird feeder.  The rule simply states that feeders should placed 5 feet off the ground, 7 feet away from structures such as fences, shrubs and trees, and in a spot 9 feet below an overhanging limb.  In the posting, I asked for feedback from anyone that has erected a feeder following these parameters.

       To date, only one individual has been kind enough to share his experiences.  Here is what John Kelly says about what happened when he place a feeder in his yard following the rule, “I have a feeder that met all of those criteria, but squirrels didn’t have any problem dropping 10 feet from an overhanging limb and landing on the feeder.  They could easily grab onto the rough wood top.  So, I covered the top with smooth metal, painted it with slippery paint, and waxed it.  It was hilarious to watch them hit the top and slide right off.”

       I want to thank John for sharing his experiences with us.  If you have experimented with placing feeder in your yard using the 5-7-9 rule, please share your findings with us.