Watching those videos gave me a good idea.....to turn my birdBATH stump
into a birdFEEDER stump
(it's a good thing there are more clever bird lovers out there than I am--until I read that Mon@rch blog posting, my birdbath had just been turned upside down on the stump till spring--what a waste that would have been all winter!)
My Sissy gave me two bags of Wild Birds Unlimited birdseed for Christmas and the scoop of "Frosty Feast" blend has been gobbled up every day on this stump feeder. The nice thing is that this stump is right outside my kitchen window--affording great viewing and picture opportunities. Here are a couple of regular visitors (the Frosty Feast blend contains LOTS of nuts!)
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Here's another sight I saw out my kitchen window late this afternoon:
Oodles of Cardinals! (with a couple of Tree Sparrows thrown in too)
I started sprinkling seed under the evergreen tree a few weeks ago for some of the groundfeeding birds who take advantage of a little more protection from my neigborhood Cooper's and Sharp-Shinned Hawks.
I remember a time not too many years ago when I would rejoice to see a pair of cardinals in my yard--maybe once a week. This winter I have more cardinals than ever before and they're here every day. I've counted as many as 13 for Project Feederwatch, and I'm thrilled!
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And lastly, here's a short little video I took last week of a couple of juncos on my thistle seed feeder. I didn't have my camera ready quick enough to capture the entire event, but it appeared to me that one junco was using this "bobbing" technique to intimidate the other junco and claim the feeder all for himself and as you'll see, it worked! Funny birds, those little juncos.
13 comments:
Your Juncos are cute. I love to watch the interactions of the birds. I think there were more Cardinals out in the country where we were birding this winter than I have seen before. However I was just commenting that we haven't seen as many Juncos this winter. I wonder what is going on??
Nice stump feeder. I have only had crows in the garden a handfull of times. They fly over but don't drop in often.
Cool behavior you captured on those juncos! I'd like a stump too.
So glad that your feeder worked out alright! Those birds look soo happy! :)
Cute video, all you have to do is inhale and you can stand up real tall, how intimidating. I like the looks of that stump feeder, it's nice it is dual purpose so it can be used all year around.
Mom
If I had a stump, I'd convert it, too. I remember Monarch's post.
I'm glad the Cardinals are flashing their red for you! I constantly see 8 pairs around the feeders but there are probably a lot more than that!
It's rare for me to see Juncos at the feeder! They're happy on the ground, picking up with the sloppy birds have dumped for them.
my word verif: krapk
It must be nice to have all those Cardinals out there.-The tree stump idea is a good one too!
Hi Lisa,
I have oodles of juncos too this year. For my Project Feederwatch, I've been counting between 30 & 35 at a time each weekend, and when I enter these numbers, it always flags me with the comment "you have recorded an unusually high number of this species, please confirm this is correct." Juncos are so much fun to watch!
Hi Lynne,
So good to see you! :-)
This stump is covering up the dead grass over my septic tank cover (that's why the snow's all melted around the bottom too)
Hi Mon@rch,
There have been other birds there too, but I wasn't able to photograph them (it's a good height for my dog to sneak some nuts too)
Hi Mom,
There's lots of little holes coming out from the snow by that stump too, so voles and mice must be getting all of the seed that spills on the ground too.
Dang Mare, you have a LOT of cardinals. Is there a lot of competition among them, or are they still all getting along OK?
Sometimes a junco will sit on the perch of the thistle seed feeder, but not very often--they usually just eat out of the tray.
Hi Larry,
I haven't seen a cardinal on the tree stump feeder yet, but it's fun to use something natural for birdfeeding.
Great cardinal picture. I seldom see mine together. It's normally all females or all males. If the females are feeding and a male shows up, all the females leave.
I love cardinals in the winter. They give a lovely splash of color to the scenery.
Hi Richard,
I'm always amazed to see so many of the cardinals together in winter also. I'm sure that will change once spring gets closer and those competitive red guys decide my yard's not big enough for all of them to be hanging around the ladies anymore!
Hi Windyridge,
I agree....there's nothing prettier than a brilliant red cardinal in an evergreen tree on a snowy day.
Wow, I've never seen so many cardinals together in one place! And it's funny what a couple hundred miles latitude makes- cardinals are replaced by pine grosbeaks here, and no juncos.
I am so jealous over all your cardinals! I've tried everything to attract them but alas have only seen individual males about 4 times in the last 20 years!
Cute videos you have added into your posts.
We haven't seen nearly as many cardinals this year as in the past. Good idea to sprinkle more feed on the ground. I do that around the feeders but will give it a try near the treeline.
I'm doing Project Feeder Watch too!!! I'm devoting Sunday morning to it this weekend. Just staring out the window for four hours...Counting. Ah.
--Robin (Bumblebee)
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