Archive for November, 2009
Insatiable Appetites
It is always incredible to me how much food a little bird can consume. At this time of year, it is the suet as well as the seed, mealworm and thistle feeders.
They have been drawing mostly white- breasted nutchatches and downy woodpeckers so far. The suet feeders are seeing more traffic than the every day feeders are. I have caged suet feeders that hold double capacity, and they have been quite helpful when it comes to having to fill them frequently. I just can’t believe how much those little birds can eat!!
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.
Not Feeling Guilty At All
I don’t usually do this. I always think I owe this blog a lot of time an energy. I give it lots of thought for sure.
Today I am going to be very short and sweet, and I am not going to feel guilty at all. I have a tendency to forget about this bird feeder. It’s probably because it is one of the most durable bird feeders on the market, easily cleaned, squirrel resistant, and holds a large amount of sunflower seed so it doesn’t need frequent refills. And, it collapses as flat as a pancake when you want to store it for a while.
So, because I often almost forget it, I thought I would pass the reasons why onto you. The mesh bird feeder by No-No is a great choice in bird feeders.
Black Friday
Since retail is where I hang out these days, I get excited over days like today. Memorial Day, Bag Sale Day, and the biggest of all them is Black Friday. I enjoy helping people find what they came for, and nothing excites me more than guiding them around the store to find the pieces they need to complete a project. At the end of every day like today, I have at least 50 stories to tell. Today was no different.
Black Friday sales always include as many goods as possible to bring in the buyers. They include electronics, tools, power tools, and anything you can imagine at low-low prices. There wasn’t much other than suet on sale in the bird section, so I hadn’t spent a lot of time there until I was approached by a gentleman who wanted some assistance. He was looking for a blue bird house for his wife for Christmas. I took much delight in helping him find the right bluebird house, and the perfect mounting post and hardware to go with it. He was so happy and thanked me over and over again for my help and I really had done so little. he was so tickeld with his selections, he grabbed a wren house off the shelf and said, “I think I have to have one of these too.” I just giggled as I moved on to my next customer.
Hope your Black Friday was a fun and satisfying as mine was.
Thanksgiving Joy
I thought it fitting that the greeting of the day come from a bird. After all this is the Bird Essentials Blog.
I am grateful every day. I am grateful for the abundance God has given me. It seems I always have everything I need. This is a special day of gratitude, that I am still able to fill the bird feeders with their favorite foods, provide a heated bird bath in the winter, and to God for the bords and wonder and enjoyment they add to my life. I am always grateful for my family, friends and church family. I now it is time for me to get moving and finish preparing the dishes I will be taking to Ephrata, PA in just a bit where I will wallow in the fun and frivolity of my grandchilren.
Have a safe, memorable and happy Thanksgiving.
“O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever”
(I Chronicles 16:34 AMP)
Life Is Good, Be Happy!
“Life isn’t about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.”
Life is good, be happy!
Mourning Dove
This quote seemed like a great way to start on another drizzly day in Novemeber, the eve of Thanksgiving.
I never mind heading out to feed the birds. It’s fun for me, but the damp weather of the last 2 days reeked havoc on the caged bird feeder. The tube was a bit clogged and that just doesn’t work for me, so I brought it in and cleaned it out. While I stood at the sink cleaning it out, there was a show taking place in front of my nose at the platform feeder. The house finches spend a lot of time in there, as do the cardinals, but today, there was a mourning dove hogging it while the finches all sat in the bushes and perched on the poles and the shepherd’s hook.
It was pretty funny watching that big dove making the little guys step aside while he chomped on and on, and the finches 9all 6 of them just waited patiently and the second the dove left, hopped on in for their share.
Let’s Talk Turkey
Wild turkey, that is! This is a pretty good time to know a bit more about our upcoming feast. Or, not!
There is a farm nearby that raises turkeys. A couple of them escaped about 2 years ago and made it to my yard where they decided that the bird bath looked like a great idea. Crash! I had to get a new bird bath after their visit! These were the farm raised domesticated ones that we find on our plate on Thanksgiving day.
Native Americans depended on the wild turkey as an important source of food. By the early 1900’s it was almost eliminated in most of its territory. A lot of effort has reinstated the wild turkey not only in it original territories, but in new areas where it had never been before. They like to dine on acorns, nuts, seeds, fruits, insects, buds, fern fronds and salamanders. The male turkey plays absolutely no part in the parenting. The young follow the mom for a few days and most learn to feed themselves quickly.
Wild turkeys can be found now in 49 of the states with Alaska being the only state that doesn’t have them. This was accomplished by transporting them to new areas where they quickly adapted and have fourished.
Life’s Tiny Delights
“ I have never been a millionaire. But I have enjoyed a crackling fire, a glorious sunset, a walk with a friend and a hug from a child. There are plenty of life’s tiny delights for all of us.” Jack Anthony, Author
Today is a 18o degree turn from yesterday. Cloudy, drizzly and a cool chill in the air that goes right through you. My mom used to call it “bone chilling”. It was the kind of day, that required a cup of tea after filling the bird feeders and bringing in one of my decorative bird houses for its pre-winter cleaning and overhall.
It’s all one of life’s tiny delights for me. I hope you experienced some the them for yourself today.
A Winding Walk
It is so true that some of my friends tire of my bird watching stories. Guess that is why I enjoy writing this blog so much. My story gets told, and the rolling eyes are on the other side of the screen where I can’t see them. LOL - so you just roll those eyes all you want. And you can even let out a big sigh. It sure won’t bother me a bit.
Today was a lovely fall day. The sky was cobalt blue, and the temperature was in the upper 50’s. There was just enough of a breeze to remind you that it was fall without being annoying or chilling. When we got home from church, I took care of all of the bird feeders, cleaned out the bird bath and hung up the new suet feeders and filled them with suet. The bright sunshine and autumn breezes were calling me. I wasn’t ready to retire to the indoors quite yet, so I grabbed my bird watching binoculars and headed for the woods and creek, and had a wonderful time with nature.
Fall is without a doubt my favorite time of year. I love the colors and the sounds and smells. These cool days have their own personality, their own smells and sights that the other seasons do not have to offer. When I got to the bottom of the hill and entered the woods, the new carpet of leaves and needles was crunching under my feet. Several birds that had been roosting in the pines and oaks above all took flight at once and gave me a start. Sight of them was obscured by the pines, but I took delight in the urgency of the sound anyway. I couldn’t help but giggle to myself that if was a quiet walk I was looking for, I had come to the wrong place at the wrong time of year. There was no tip-toeing here, so I found a fallen tree trunk and took a seat.
There is magic in the sound of the rippling water when it comes to attracting birds. The creek bank was alive with a male and female cardinal, a large number of house finches, a few doves and several wrens. It made bringing the binoculars along a wonderful thing, and I watched as long as they would let me, and until a dog came boucing though the scene and every bird in sight fled. I walked home filled with wonder and peace, and a great memory of the moments. Now, if I could only get someone to recreate that fall scent that is present in my hair and jacket and clothes after such a walk. Heck, I don’t even know how to describe it!
They Call Themselves Bobwhites
What’s a covey you ask? A covey is a unit of birds. A covey of birds functions as a unit. They roost together at night, they forage together in the same territory and hang around together under the same cover.
One of the bird species that function in coveys is the Northern Bobwhite. They form a circle when they roost, and their tails touch in the center of the circle, their heads and bodies pointed outward. It sort of resembles a wheel with their tails being the spokes of the wheel. This group roosting practice helps each bird maintain their body heat.
Bobwhites are small chicken like birds. Their loud call resembles their name “Bob-white”. They are year round residents here and across Pennsylvania, and every state from the midwest to the eastern shore. The Bobwhites are hunted in many areas,and thus they are becoming somewhat rare from that threat. They are ground feeders favoring weed seeds, insects and waste grains. And, they are also ground nesters. Bobwhites are unlike the other game birds and are monogomous.
Occasionally, especially in the very late winter and very early spring, a few of them will wander into our backyard. They come down the hill from the large open field behind us and forage the ground beneath the tube bird feeders where they are most likely to find some of the waste grains. I always enjoy seeing them, and love to watch them strut about with their bobbing checken like movements.