If you have a birdfeeder in your yard, you may have dealt with “bully birds”. Bully birds are usually blackbirds, grackles, house sparrows, and pigeons who want the birdseed in your feeder or on the ground and will chase away your favorite birds so they can inhale it all.
Bully birds are usually bigger than the birds you are trying to attract with your feeder, so try to limit accessibility of the feeding ports and keep the area under the feeder as free of seed and suet as possible to discourage pigeons. It can also be beneficial to eliminate favorite bully bird foods from your bird feeding area-they seem to prefer bread, corn, wheat and sunflower seeds. Finches prefer hanging thistle bird feeders, while safflower seeds in hopper or tray feeders will appeal to cardinals, nuthatches, and chickadees.
If you enjoy bird watching but don’t have the time to venture out into the wilderness, attracting birds to your yard can be an easy way to appreciate winged wildlife at home. To get started, birdfeeders are the best way to attract wildlife. If birds have a reliable source of food, they will make nests near or even in your yard. Birdhouses can also encourage birds to live in your yard, but will often be taken over by bees or other nuisances. Birdbaths are great for viewing small birds at play, but should be placed in a semi-sheltered area (such as beneath a tree) to avoid notice of predators. For the winter months, you could even pamper your avian friends with heated bird baths.
Keep in mind that small birds will avoid locations that have nearby predators such as coyotes, hawks, or falcons.
The Pacific Northwest has so many native species of birds that it can be hard to keep track of which ones are visiting your window bird feeders each day. To get a wide variety of birds to eat at your feeder try using a variety of food to lure them; sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, peanuts and traditional bird seed are food types that can be used to attract different birds.
You will be surprised how many different colors shapes and sizes of birds you will see. Gold finches, nut hatchers, cardinals, bluebirds, woodpeckers and doves are all frequent visitors to Pacific Northwest birdfeeders. If you’re really interested in identifying the birds purchase some bird-watching binoculars for a birds-eye view.
There are several bird feeder companies that manufacture quality feeders that are distributed through retailers. In 1969, artist, engineer and inventor Peter Kilham developed a revolutionary tube bird feeder that became popular with both birds and people and remains a best seller to this day. Their unique design allows you to keep a good amount of food in the feeder at all times, eliminating the need to constantly refill it.
Many people believe that feeding the birds can help the planet maintain its own health and restore the balance of nature-a larger number of birds will survive to reproduce in the spring if they are fed during the winter. This is just one way that we can protect the wildlife in our area and ensures that we don’t contribute to the termination of species.
While some of us take measures to prevent squirrels from feeding from our birdfeeders, it’s also nice to offer something to our furry backyard friends. One option is to spill a little bit of the bird seed when you’re filling the feeder. But a much more entertaining option is to add squirrel feeders to your garden décor.
These feeders are designed for squirrels and intended to keep them distracted and off the bird feeder; most of the time they’re successful! Squirrel feeders can contain a variety of different feeds, including peanuts, corn cobs, and sunflowers. Squirrel feeders also come in different styles, some of which feature more entertaining or original designs.
A Bluebirds’ diet consists of insects and fruit. These birds will perch themselves on a branch looking down waiting for an insect, then swoop in on them almost like a bird of prey. If you want to feed them you can plant native plants like American Bittersweet, or you can try providing them with mealworms. These worms (which are actualy beetle larval and not worms at all) will provide them with a high source of nutrition and protein.
You can first try feeding them by putting the worms in a pan or cup close to one of thier favorite perches. They are quick to learn where the food is and can even be trained to come to a call or whistle. The biggest problem with feeding Bluebirds mealworms is, they aren’t the only ones who enjoy these mouthwatering treats. Solution? Try a Bluebird Feeder. With a Bluebird feeder the bird has to enter through a entrance hole where the food is and most other birds will not do this. In the end you will have plenty of hours to spend with these beautiful birds!
Now that I’ve read up on the lives and behavioral patterns of purple martins, I must admit I’m a bit jealous. I had always enjoyed gazing at their violet-hued plumage and listening to their striking courtship vocalizations, but that was the extent of it. Then I found out that these winged wonders take to the skies in the fall and fly all the way to the Southern Hemisphere; with the weather the way it is up here in November, I can hardly blame them.
The majority of purple martins don’t arrive back in the States until spring, but it’s always a good plan to have your purple martin bird houses set up and ready to go by February. Since martins live in large groups, their houses are built accordingly. The homes should be placed out in a yard by February at the latest to catch the first few groups of martins on their way back up north. Although it takes persistence and more than a little luck to attract these birds, once they’ve found your specialized house they will return again and again.
We’re all familiar with the European honey bee – a species known for fiercely protecting the honey it stores for the winter. These bees live in hives, there is one queen per colony, and worker drones fly around doing the queen’s bidding. They are quick to sting people who venture near the hive, so some people look upon them as pests. Mason bees are often overshadowed by their hive-minded relations, but they live and behave in a completely different manner.
Gardeners covet mason bees for a number of reasons. First, they are more passive and restrained than other bees because they have no honey to defend. Each female bee makes her own nest, and she will only sting if trapped underfoot or squeezed. Perhaps most importantly, mason bees are efficient pollinators – a real boon to have in a backyard garden. They cannot make their own tunnel dwellings, so they rely on preexisting crevices like those in a bee house. These bees are also resistant to many of the diseases that have hurt the honey bee population.
Quickly becoming one of America’s favorite birds is the Oriole. With their striking black and orange or yellow feathers and their unique whistles and song it’s easy to understand why. So why not bring some more color into your yard with these beautiful birds! Orioles do most of their migrating at night so by the time they get to you they’re ready to eat.
Now how to feed them? Nectar feeders with Oriole nectar are always a good idea. But nectar isn’t the only food on the menu. Try getting a fruit and jelly feeder. Cut oranges in half and attach them to the feeder with the juicy side out. The other favorite is grape jelly, I’ve heard many people say that not only do they keep their orioles around longer (some say all winter) but the sugar content makes for a high-energy food. And if you also love Woodpeckers, Robins, Warblers and Tanagers you’ll have your yard filled with favorites. Once you get them you can try some other foods. I had one person say her Orioles and Blue jays loved popcorn! No salt please. So feed and enjoy!
Sunflower seeds are an undeniable delicacy in the winged world as proven by the fact that birds will flutter from acres around just to indulge in the bite-sized morsels. Bird seed is also among the most convenient of foods to buy as it can be found in bulk at most farm supply stores. Still, this mainstay of the bird diet isn’t exactly the be-all, end-all. If you’d like to diversify you backyard birding portfolio by bringing in a few new specimens, try upgrading to suet.
To you and me, suet doesn’t seem like the most appealing dish in the world. To a woodpecker, nuthatch or chickadee, however, it’s one of the most heavenly concoctions ever devised. Suet is really a glorified term for a block of rendered fat that may feature a few additions such as seeds and peanut butter. Suet bird feeders resemble a small cage, which can be loaded with a brick of suet and left for the birds to enjoy.