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A CROW, A WREN, AND A SQUIRREL – WILD DRAMA

Sep20

       Most of the most memorable wildlife sightings seem to take place when and where we least expect it.  Such was the case this morning.

       After eating breakfast, my daughter placed some leftover scrambled eggs in a dog bowl sitting on her back porch.  In a few minutes, an American crow flew in and walked over to the dog bowl.  It then proceeded to pick out all of the scrambled eggs and drop them on the floor beside the bowl. After eating a bit of the eggs, it slowly sundered out into the yard and began eating dog food scattered on the ground.  While the crow was eating the dogfood, a gray squirrel showed up and ate a sliver of the eggs. My daughter said that while dining, the gray squirrel held the food like it was eating a potato chip.

     All the while the squirrel was dining, a Carolina wren was loudly fussing as it flew between the house and a nearby planter.  The squirrel did not seem upset with the wren’s behavior.  My daughter said that while eating, the squirrel sat on its haunches and held the food in its front feet like it would a potato chip.     

     When the squirrel departed, the wren dropped down and picked up the largest piece of the scrambled eggs and flew off.

       This drama lasted only five minutes as my daughter and granddaughter watched drama less than 10 feet away through a glass door.

       Now that is the way to start the day!

THE VALUE OF LEAVING DRY CONEFLOWER SEED HEADS

Sep16

        With each passing day, the beautiful coneflower blossoms that adorned our gardens throughout the summer wither and die. When this occurs all that remains are prickly brown seed heads.  When this happens often your first impulse is to prune cut them off.  If you want to help many of the seed-eating birds that have called your yard home throughout the spring and summer, resist the urge to snip them off.

        The reason for this is each seed head contains 200-300 nutritious seeds.  Since the seed heads persist into winter, they provide seeding-eating birds with a source of food when food is scarce.  Indeed these natural seed feeders are an asset to any backyard.

        American goldfinches are particularly fond of the seeds; however, other birds dine on the nutritious seeds too.  The list of the birds that compete with goldfinches for this bounty include blue jays, mockingbirds, Carolina chickadees brown-headed nuthatches and cardinals. 

BACKYARD SECRET – FUELING RUBYTHROAT MIGRATION?

Sep3

       

During the past few weeks the hummingbirds that have been visiting our feeders seem are on a feeding frenzy. The reason for this is they are trying to store enough fuel (in the form of fat) to power their fall migration.

       Prior to migration, an adult female ruby-throated weighs roughly 1/10th of an ounce (3.5 grams).  These long-distance migrants will consume enough nectar and insects to increase their weight to 5.5 grams (0.194 ounces).  Each gram of this stored fat enables a hummingbird to migrate 300 miles.

THE TIMING OF THE FALL RUBYTHROAT MIGRATION

Aug30

       If you have been feeding hummingbirds, you have probably noticed that the number of rubythroats visiting your feeders has dropped significantly. This reason for this is rubythroats are heading south on their fall migration. Interestingly, the timing of their departure is dependent on their sex and age. Let’s take a quick look at the timing of the migration in Georgia.

       If you take a close look at the birds visiting your feeders, you will notice that currently few adult males are still using your feeders. The reason for this is adult males are the first to leave.  While some adult males will begin migration as early as July, most will leave in August.  The adult females are the next to leave they begin their southward trek in August.  The last to depart are the hummers that hatched this year. Most of these birds migrate in September.

BACKYARD SECRET – KILLDEER CAN FEED AT NIGHT

Aug26

       One evening this week my granddaughter called to ask me, Is it unusual see killdeer feeding in a brightly-lit parking lot at night?”  She posed the question because she and her friend spotted two killdeer feeding alongside puddles of water in a large well-lit parking lot.

       While killdeer do most of their feeding during the daylight hours, they do feed at night. Killdeer will hunt for food during the non-breeding season on moonlight nights.  In addition, they also forage for food at night in open areas such as parking lots and athletic fields that are bathed in bright artificial light.  It seems that the bright lights often attract a bounty of insects such as moths and beetles.

BACKYARD SECRET – BUTTERFLIES HAVE AN ODD WAY OF TASTING THEIR FOOD

Aug23

          We taste food by placing it in our mouths; such is not the case with butterflies. Unbelievably, butterflies taste food with their feet. It seems that when a butterfly lands on a flower, before it unrolls its straw-like proboscis and begins dining on the flower’s nectar, they taste the potential source of food through their feet.  They are able to accomplish this amazing fete because their feet are cloaked with cells (chemoreceptors) that let a butterfly know whether the flower contains sugary nectar.

     

BACKYARD SECRET – HOW MUCH NECTAR DOES AN ADULT E. TIGER SWALLOW EAT IN A DAY?

Aug19

         The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail is one of the largest butterflies commonly seen in Georgia yards.  In spite of its relatively large size (wingspan -3.5 – 5.5 inches), this colorful butterfly consumes only 0.0014 – 0.0105 ounces of nectar daily.  To put this in perspective, a standard-sized paperclip weighs only 0.04 ounces.

THE BEST HUMMINGBIRD FOOD

Aug9

 

    During July and August Georgians typically feed more ruby-throated hummingbirds than at any other time of the year.  I know that is the case at my home.  For weeks, the demand of sugar water has been so great my wife has been making 20 cups of nectar every other day to keep up with the hummingbirds’ demand for the sugary treat. 

       Whenever you are feeding hummingbirds, you want to be sure that you are feeding them the right food.  With that in mind, here is the recipe for the best hummingbird food.  Boil a mixture containing 4 parts water and 1-part white table sugar for minutes.  Allow the nectar to cool and store in your refrigerator.

       During the extremely hot weather that has been roasting Georgia for weeks, it is best to replace the nectar in your feeders every 3 days or so.

FEEDING BIRDS SEEDS DURING THE SUMMER CAN BE CHALLENGING

Aug5

       Feeding seeds to birds during the summer can be more challenging than during the winter months.  One of the main reasons for this is in the summer the high humidity and heat encourages mold and bacteria to contaminate seeds. As a result, birds that dine on contaminated food are more likely to become infected by a number of diseases. Here are a few tips that will help you prevent this from happening. 

       During the summer, you often have to clean feeders every 3-5 days in order to discourage a buildup of dangerous bacteria and mold.  Clean feeders with soap and water. Follow this up by disinfecting them with a solution of nine parts water and one part bleach.  Dry the feeders before refilling them with seeds.

       Some seeds are safer to use in summer.  One of these is black oil sunflower seed.  These seeds can be fed shelled and unshelled.

       White millet also can resist mold and bacteria however, if you scatter it on the ground, the millet seeds will spoil quicker than they will if fed in feeders.

       Avoid feeding mixed seed during the summer. The reason for this is it contains ingredients that quickly become contaminated (e.g. cracked corn and milo). Peanuts also spoil quickly in humid, hot weather.

 

BACKYARD SECRET – SILVER-SPOTTED SKIPPERS SHUN YELLOW FLOWERS

Jul30

       Sometimes a wildlife secret hides in plain sight.  A good example of that is, in spite of the fact that the silver-spotted skipper visits gardens across Georgia; it is not generally known that this handsome butterfly shuns yellow flowers. While the silver-spotted skipper occasionally nectars at yellow flowers, it by far prefers feeding at purple, red, blue and pink blossoms.

       If you want to see if this is true, closely watch which flowers silver-spotted skippers visit in your flower gardens this summer.