Archive for the ‘Platform bird feeders’ Category
It Is All In The Way We Perceive It
The news headlines still seem focused on the economy. It is so easy for all of us to lose sight of some the promises that have been made to us. Yesterday, when it all seemed to be caving in on me, and I needed the solace of His Word, I received this passage in an email. It was if it dropped in on the wings of an eagle:
“So I tell you, don’t worry about everyday life– whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn’t life consist of more than food and clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not. And why worry about your clothes? Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you? You have so little faith! So don’t worry about having enough food or drink or clothing. Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.” Matthew 6:25-33
Today, as I watched the cardinals feeding at the platform feeder at daybreak, I counted my many blessings and said thanks. Have a wonderful Sunday.
First In, Last Out
Getting up early and taking inventory of the different birds who are dining at the bird feeders and suet feeder in my back yard has its advantages. With the huge amount of snow we have on the ground, we are inundated with my happy birds, the dark eyed juncos otherwise known as snow birds. They like every feeder - not picky at all.
The advantage in getting up early is seeing the first in. The cardinals are always here very early. I think they always travel in pairs too, and when you see the female, the male cardinal is always close by. This morning was no exception, only there were 3 pairs just after dawn. They were on and under the platform feeder and the heated bird bath is the best investment I have made in years.
Cardinals do not seem to like the tube feeders. They seem to like something solid under their feet. They love the safflower seed that I scattered on the snow for them. We got about 16 inches of snow and it is so much fun to watch them. From an inventory point of view they should be the last ones here this evening too and I can’t wait. The splash of color on the white is a true picture to behold.
Ordinary With A Twist
I love comical surprises. The day started out like just an ordinary day. A little laundry, a couple of cat boxes to clean, and breakfast, and breakfast dishes before scurring out the door to work, and all the while trying to keep my eye out the windows to see if I had any special visitors at the bird feeders. Right before Bob left for work, he asked me to take a look at the strange bird sitting in the tree outside the door. I looked out to see not a single bird around except a sharp-shinned hawk that was ready to take off over the hill.
Right after he left the back yard was bustling with my happy snow birds at the -window feeder, a couple of siskins and other finches and mourning doves. So, off I went to finish folding the laundry. When I returned to my place at the table with my coffee and yogurt, the back yard was once again empty. The doves had left the platform bird feeder, the snow birds were nowhere to be seen.
They had all decided that they didn’t want to be breakfast for the two sharop-shinned hawk that were stalking over the entire area. Sharp-shinned hawks and cooper’s hawks are often mistaken for one another, but the sharp-shinned is smaller. They are year round residents here, though it was the first I had seen one in the yard. They may be small for a hawk, but a fierce predator.
One sat atop the shepherd’s hook on the hill and one on the heated bird bath. So that’s the twist and very out of the ordinary. It was quite a thrill, and something I may only see once in this lifetime, so I had to pass it on.
Keeping My Cats Young
Or - giving them an old-aged heart attack. I am not sure which. I have 2 cats, Spanky and Mischief. They are both 11 years old, and some of the playfulness is gone, but they have discovered some new entertainment at the patio door where the window feeders are hanging. A few feet from that and on the ground is the platform feeder.
Between them, they haven’t had moment when they weren’t swarmed with our fine feathered friends. Mostly finches, titmice and juncos, and my cats have been excitedly watching all day long. Mischief hasn’t left the window once all day.
There were two white-throated sparrows out there a few minutes ago, and they were so close to the door, I thought both of my kitties were going to go pouncing right through the glass. It’s more exercise than they have had in the last couple of years. It’s great to see them act like kittens again, so I think the window feeders will stay right where they are.
Australian Christmas Wreath
This delightful picture was taken at Lamington national park, west of the Gold Coast. These are native Australian mountain parrots, the red and blue kind are crimson rosella and the red and green are King Parrots. They are feasting on sunflower seed which Mr. Watt had left for them, but did not expect them to form such a perfect ring.
This “johnnie-come-lately” guy on the bottom is about to jump into the centre, much to the discontent of the other birds.
Now wouldn’t it be a treat to look out at our own bird feeders and find one of these birdies perched there? My platform feeder would look so totally different if I added a couple of the mountain parrots.
Continue to have a wonderful and safe holiday season.
Get The Shovel Out
I know it isn’t a big deal to some, but the snow fell here all day today. Travel was almost at a stand still everywhere. I live 3.4 miles from the store and it took me 25 minutes to get home. One of the customers came into the store came in as said he was there for two things and I could have 3 guesses. I have never seen so much rock salt and so many snow shovels in one day as I did today.
So tomorrow will be a dig out and clean up day. The driveway will get a good snowblowing. I am already looking forward to watching the birds frolic in the heated bird bath. I will have to take the platform bird feeder down. It is a very big large mound of white now, and the funny part is that the birds found their way through the snow to the seed. They can be quite enterprising little creatures. I think one of my favorite things about them. The snow birds still look like they are so happy and having so much fun.
Sunday’s Finest
You will never guess the highlight of my day. This was one of those gorgeous late November days, when the sky was clear and shiny with blue all day. The bright late fall sun was enough to make the skin feel warmed, while the air was a bit brisk with that special fall smell. Needless to say, I spent a good deal of time outdoors before heading in to start the Christmas decorations.
So, I will tell you. The highlight of my day was watching up close and real personal a white-breasted nuthatch that came from nowhere. He was taking sunflower seeds from the platform bird feeder and carrying them from the feeder to the trunk of the Bradford pear tree where he would nudge the seed into the bark and then hammer it with his beak until it opened. He did that over and over, before starting to take them to the ground beneath the tree and storing them in the dirt.
I spent at least 30 minutes just frozen in place so as not to disurb him. The best thrill of all was the thought that he will most likely return for that cache of seeds under the pear tree. Lucky me.
Dare To Rise & Fly
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How many times have we heard that we have all of the God given tools and gifts to accomplish anything we want to do, and be whatever we want to be? There is always something magical in hearing those things, because I believe it’s true. Do you? How many birds have you seen who actually never spread their wings and learn to fly? You can - just believe you can, ask the Lord to help, and go for it!
Just some food for thought before I go out to put safflower and sunflower seeds in the platform bird feeder I cleaned this afternoon.
Tiny Sparrow Tells All
Life got me by the tail again yesterday. Somehow the surprise birthday party my son was throwing for my daughter in law and a full 9 hours at work took precedence over writing about my fine feathered friends. Go figure.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if birds could talk? I sometimes think that some of the research we do, and all we have at our fingertips that tell us about the different species is not quite enough. And as the species evolve, mature and acclamate themselves to different climates, I am not so sure that all we have in print may be changing as well. So, we can take it all as factual until we witness something new and different.
So, if a sparrow could talk, this is what I think he would tell us: The sparrow family is a large group of relatively small birds that includes towhees, juncos and longspurs. All of them have short, cone-shaped beaks specialized for cracking open seeds. They are often seen scratching at the ground in search of seeds. During the summer they switch to more of an insect diet to provide a higher protein food for thier nestlings. They tend to be a secretive bunch and prefer hanging out on or near the ground. While some are solitary, most are seen in flocks. Sparrows are a challenging groups to identify to the species level because so many of them look like “little brown birds”. On close inspecition many have beautiful colors and patterns, and when vocalizing their distinctive songs, clinch identification. To narrow down the range of possibilities, look for the following features: head pattern, breast streaked or unstreaked, overall body shape and the habitat where the “sparrow family member” is seen.
Ground platform bird feeders are best for sparrows. Seed blends with some millet appeal to these ground feeding birds, but they also really like sunflower seeds.
We will take a close look at te American tree sparrow, fox sparrows, song sparrows, swamp sparrows, white-throated sparrows, white-crown sparrows and dark-eyed juncos separately, so you can get to know them a bit better and start to recognize their differences.
Never A Skeptic
What a beautiful fall we are having. The leaves have become many shades of brilliant gold, red, cranberry and orange and are starting to blanket the ground.
Last week, I moved the platform bird feeder filled with safflower and sunflower seeds from their spot on the hill to a shepherd’s hook by the patio and just outside my kitchen window. My husband the skeptic, kept saying the birds would never find it. And for the first day or so, there wasn’t much activity. This morning, there were a total of 7 house finches and purple finches munching away. They are so close and so much fun to watch. I even grabbed the binoculars for a while and got a real up close and personal look.
Guess that will teach my husband to be skeptical!