I don't know, Gita. I doubt it's because you're in a development, because Audubon says they like "areas with dense low shrubs and open ground, either short grass or open soil, thus often common around suburban hedges and lawns". http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/northern-mockingbird
They just don't seem to be as common as other birds.
Snow Birds
Our Mocking bird makes ringtone sounds. I can't even count the times I have gone running for our phone before realizing it is our local mocker teasing me.
That's so funny, Holly!! Is it the same tone as your cell phone?
My Mockingbird doesn't make any sounds at all, at least not that I can hear, and it lets me get quite close to it.
Seeing more and more of the Red Bellied WP--he tries to get his share
of the suet--but the Grackles trash it too fast. I have no more.....need to buy some.
Kind of a useless expense--as the blackbirds eat it all day long--same as my feeders.
Put a saucer of peanuts and dried Cranberries on my table out there.
A squirrel came and ate all the peanuts....will see if any bird likes the berries.
Here's Old Red.....
He's a handsome fellow, Gita! You're a creative person, so If you can hang your suet feeders somewhere (like from that chain I see in the photo), you could make your own grackle-resistant suet feeders. This design should be easy to copy: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=9089+10468+20781+25814&pcatid=25814
Even better, hang your feeders horizontally, and cover all but the bottom with something. This link shows what I mean. This wooden cover looks really nice, but I myself probably would use cardboard and duct tape, and hang it using garden ties : - ) http://www.a-home-for-wild-birds.com/upside-down-suet-feeder.html
A Robin was pecking at scraps of seed hulls in the snow on my patio today. I felt bad for it so I gave it raisins and oranges. It wasn't interested, so I soaked the raisins in warm water to soften them.
It ignored them and kept pecking scraps in the snow, so I thought it was thirsty and gave it water. That wasn't it. I got apples later that day and chopped them up. It didn't eat those either. I concluded that it was trying to find bits of sunflower seeds, because of their fat content. Like greenthumb said, fruit was a bust!
Muddy--
That chain is one of two that holds up my porch swing....it is always in motion...
i DO have one of the large suet feeders cages--never use it...I also have a plexiglass
upside down suet feeder someone made and sent me. I affixed a arched
plant hanger way up on the tree trunk and have a chain hanging from it to
hold the feeder. Two winters ago--I hung Sally's expensive suet cake she gave me
(It took a big ladder to even get it up there) and waited. I was hoping to see
some Wood Peckers. NO birds at all visited it. In spring--I took it down.
I watch the Grackles by my suets--both of which hang by their little chains from
the trunk of the Maple(see picture above). The Grackles hang sideways, upside down,
every which way and just peck away. Today, their maneuvers must have unkooked
the suet holder-and the Grackle was chowing down on it on the ground.
I had to go back outside and put it back in the cage.
I don't want to stop feeding the birds--but I simply have to stop the Grackles et al
from eating up all the seed. I don't think they would care WHAT seed I put out,
they will still eat it all....
If I were to fill the 3-tube feeder with just Safflower seed--($12)--will some of the
smaller birds go hungry? Do they all eat safflower? I still would throw a lot of
Millet down for the doves. They can ge to my big feeder--but it is hard for the doves
to maneuver their big bodies so that they can feed from the ports.
Most of them peck on all the seed in the catch basin below the tubes.
So do many of the smaller birds.
I an starting to hate all this......G
We've had finches, including gold, all winter. They peruse the Niger feeder as well as sunflower. Muddy are your's still wearing their camo?
Saw my first Robin today--hunting around the grass foe something to eat.
Ric, I haven't seen goldfinches since last fall, but I think I heard them today.
Gita, I would try that upside down suet feeder again if I were you. ...and the caged one too. You never know....they could solve your black bird problem, and what do you have to lose besides a big headache? The woodpeckers will find the new feeders. All sorts of little birds would use the caged feeder, especially downies, wrens, sparrows, nuthatches and chickadees.
In my yard, cardinals, doves and sparrows eat safflower. I don't remember which little birds besides sparrows eat it because I haven't had to use it in my tube feeder since last fall; also, they have their own caged feeders.
Gita, please post photos of your 2 "new" feeders before you hang them up. It occurred to me that the plexiglass one might be too slippery for the woodpeckers to use. If that's the case, there's probably an easy way to fix it.
An idea about your caged feeder: it's hard to tell without looking at it, but you might be able to put your creative re-purposing skills to work to figure out a way to put both suet and bird seed in it.
Gosh, I need to get more of my safflower, millet, and put a new pure suet out. They've sure chowed down past two weeks. Who thought this deep cold would be so persistent?
My yellow feeder is very well liked by house finches, sized for finches like its black and bright yellow parts suggest. I did see a cardinal sit on the edge facing a bit away and going over his shoulder to grab each seed.
And I watched through binoculars, closely, as a cardinal picked up each safflower seed, chewed for a bit and then the white shell popped out of his beak, and then another seed...like a little machine.
The snow makes it hard for birds too. I'm sure they could find some overwintering insects or slugs under the leaf litter and mulch if only this white %$@# would melt !
My birds eat much more safflower than millet. Like you said, the cardinals like it, and I think the doves prefer it as well.
The bluebirds are frustrating me. I made a nice batch of mixed suet, spread it on cardboard so they could eat it on the ground, and stood about 12' away to keep the starlings away. Juncos, a cardinal, a yellow-rumped warbler, Carolina wrens and one or two brave bluebirds came right away. The rest of the bluebirds stayed in the trees, chattering as if they were debating about how much of a danger I posed. I've decided that they're not very smart.
I need to make some of the suet from the RECIPE i now have.
I think I feel it would be extremely messy to work with. Yes? No?
I have the lard--a big jar of crunchy peanut butter--corn flour--
raisins--cranberries--peanuts---bird seed--what else do I need?
Besides being lazy--I also do not want to go through all that and just have the
Grackles etc. devour it all.
Muddy-
I think you misunderstood what I was saying about my "caged feeder".
What I meant is a LARGE suet feeder cage which holds about 4 suet cakes.
Not a caged bird feeder as you are assuming. My fault for sounding confusing.
I am also NOT going to hang the Lucite WP feeder up. I just don't have the
desire or the energy or the stamina to deal with all this. Too old....
Keeping my own life organized and dealing with everything is enough for me.
BUT--I still want to try to make the suet out of the recipe.....
I will smear it into the bark of my big, old maple tree. Let the crawlers go for it.
OK! time to stop sitting here at the "C"......need to go watch TV.
G.
Making peanut butter suet is messy, but the mess pretty much stays in the pot. I refrigerate it, cut it into sandwich-bag sized blocks, then put it in the freezer. Add lots of cayenne powder if you wish to keep the squirrels out of it.
Muddy, you are way sweet to those bluebirds!
Yesterday, we had a dozen goldfinches at once on the deck ,maybe more. They were crowded onto the thistle feeder, 7 or 8 at a time, also eating safflower and sunflower. The boys are starting to turn yellow! Sweet little flying daffodils.
I've decided cheap seed just isn't worth it, mostly because of that larger red millet looking seed (milo, I think?) that no bird wants to eat. I've been buying bags of single seed types at Southern states and making my own mixes. I've been feeding 4 things this winter: 1) a mix of white millet and safflower seed plus some nyger (starlings and squirrels pretty much ignore this), 2) straight black-oil sunflower seeds, 3) for the squirrels, a mix of BOS, peanut hearts, cracked corn, and anything else I have on hand, and 4)nyger/thistle seeds.
I'm almost totally out of seed except for a little of the safflower/millet mix -- I've been just tossing that out only the deck the past couple of days, along with the last of those too-dry PB cookies. The other feeders are empty or nearly so. Time for a seed run!
Yes, I have been bending over backwards for the bluebirds, but no more! I bought a new cage feeder with larger entrance (square) holes and put an enticing mix of food in it. They're gonna have to go in it or find someone willing to feed flocks of starlings in the hopes that bluebirds get a morsel.
The red millet-looking seeds are probably red millet, which birds "shun" according to Cornell: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/Page.aspx?pid=1179
As Sally once joked, maybe we should start growing safflower! The flowers are attractive, and deer and rabbits might avoid them due to their spiny leaves, so they're somewhat tempting even though non-native. Yes, I'm also joking....I think.
Take a look at this crazy picture!
http://www.buzzfeed.com/tasneemnashrulla/the-tale-of-the-weasel-and-woodpecker#.tfM5K3pKQ
This weasel is attacking a woodpecker! O_o
Wow, what a lucky woodpecker!! If the photographer hadn't come along just then, it might have been a goner. That baby weasel was trying to bite off more than it could chew, I think!
Wow, what a picture to capture!
Several years ago when I was heading off to work in the pre-dawn hours, there was something in the middle of the gravel drive. As I got closer, I realized that it was an owl attacking a opossum. It had the opossum in its talons and the opossum was struggling. For a few moments the owl was looking very undecided whether to fly off and away from my car or to pursue the attack on the opossum. It was very interesting and was over in minutes. The owl decided to fly away from the perceived danger of me and my car, and the opossum once turned loose scurried for safety into the woodland brush cover.
I never dreamed that could happen.
Aspenhill, WHAT a sight to see in your own area!!!! I'm thinking the possum was VERY happy you happened along.
I need some educating.....
You talk about:
white Millet
tan/beige millet
and red millet. (is that Milo?)...
I buy Millet in 10lb bags at Big Lots for $7. It is not white--but, kind of,
neutral, sand color. Which one is it?
The other day--I emptied out the whole 7lbs. in my 3-tube feeder
to see who would eat it. No one touched it for 2 days.
Usually, if I sprinkle this on the ground--the doves are sure to gobble it up.
This AM, before I left for work, it was still full.
Got home tonight around 5:30--and looked. All the tubes were 3/4 empty.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF IT? Maybe the black birds got desperate?
G.
I think it took the black birds 2 days to find it.
Yeah! How come all of a sudden they got so stupid?
They have been raiding my feeder daily--now it is like--OH!
There's seed in there!
I was ready to empty it out and throw some on the ground for the Doves...
I think I will just mix the other bag of Millet in with the garbage seed. Might as well !
Other than a partial bag of Black Oilers, I am out of seed.
You shouls see the mess all over the patio floor! Hulls all over--under everything...
in every nook and cranny...Will do a serious vacuuming with my blower
when the weather turns...
The Weasel and the Woodpecker, a story of survival. Your right, it sounds like the title of a children's book. That photo is just amazing.
They made the evening news! That woodpecker sure looked different than the ones we have around here.
I made some lovely ; - ) feeders today by flattening cardboard boxes, spreading suet on them and sheltering them with golf umbrellas. They were quite popular with bluebirds, juncos and starlings. The wrens, titmice, downies, chickadees and the occasional smart bluebird that realized it could fit inside the caged bird feeders feasted on a tasty mix of sunflower hearts, crushed peanuts, seeds and dried mealworms.
I also stole greenthumb's and ecnalg's idea of turning plastic storage containers on their sides to create instant sheltered feeding areas. And, of course, there was the old standby...throwing a tarp over the patio table and tossing seeds under it! Juncos, sparrows, doves and cardinals were pigging out all day long.
I did some switchovers today.
Since no one was feeding at the fancy-schmancy finch feeder filled with a
SEED Finch mix--I realized the feeder port slits were too small for any one to
get the small seeds out. Seems it was meant ONLY for Thistle seeds.
SO! I dumped all the fancy Finch seeds into the regular seeds mix,
emptied the Thistle seeds I had just put in the small thistle feeder and the sock"
and put them in the "fancy schmancy" finch feeder--and now everyone is happy--
mostly the Juncos, which have been chowing down on the Thistle seed.
Didn't know they liked it so much!
First chance I get--I need to go get some more safflower seed. That feeder is also empty.
Never gonna win the war against the Blackbirds. I cannot police them every 5 minutes.
I almost hate them enough to not put any seed out at all....They are too ravenous...
Won't get out to anywhere in the nrxt couple of days--pretty snowed in.
G.
I hope all your birds appreciate you, Muddy. We got a lot of visitors today. The plastic container was popular, and I could turn it as needed to keep the snow from blowing in. Also added a suet cake to one of the levels on the CD holder so that the juncos would have an easier time of it since they don't always hang on well to the suet cages. They caught on quickly to this new method, one perching on top and a second on the lower level pecking at the bottom. Sure was a good day for watching them!
Good for you for figuring out the thistle feeder problem, Gita! Which birds have you seen on the safflower feeder?
The birds are always grateful, ecnalg; that's what keeps me trudging through the snow to make sure they have food. That, and the chance to see the fearless little wrens, chickadees and titmice up close. They're so cute!
The juncos must have been really glad to see the suet on the CD stand.
They are indeed cute. The chickadees look so crisp and the wrens are adorable. Just now one was perched on the top of a porch chair that is right next to the window, and I was able to get within 3 feet of him.
Side note -- I talked to my brother in Boston yesterday and he was pleased that the snow had melted or compacted enough that he could now see the tops of his patio chairs.
Wow, that's a lot of snow! My patio isn't bad and won't be hard to clear. I'm wondering how long the snow that's piled almost up to the mailbox is going to take to melt, though.
Getting low on seed. The 10 yr old liked watching out the window. I am trying to help him identify birds.
Ric, dug out the network of bird feeder paths for me. Look at that snow fly.....
A wide variety of birds always visit us in the winter, especially during a snow storm.
Here are a few of our "snow birds" from yesterday and today....
Northern Cardinal, female
Yellow-rumped Warbler, male
Red-bellied Woodpecker, male
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, male (one of my favorites!)
House Sparrow, male
A few more...
Carolina Chickadee
Slate-colored Junco, probably a male
White-throated Sparrow, male
Carolina Wren
Tufted Titmouse
Of all the birds you posted the warbler is the only one we do not ha ve here--
unless I have not observed them.
Question:
What is the main difference between the Carolina Wren--and the House Wren?
I have one that 'lives" around here. last summer--it even built a nest in one of my pots--
Complaining and bitching at me when i came too close.
Gita
Gita, I know that they are two separate species, and I can tell by markings that mine are Carolina Wrens. I have never seen any but the Carolina here where we live. Mother have more of a buff colored chest/belly and have a white stripe near their eyes. We have had a pair nest on our balcony for two summers now... In a pot on the shelf of my plant table. From looking at photos on Google, the House Wren is more drab, more of a solid brown all over.
Karen
House wrens are also a bit smaller.
Mourning Doves are "bird of the day" today... we have more than 25 in the yard today. They are all afraid of me, so every time I go past the patio door they fly up from the deck with a big clattering fuss.
thanks for your excellent photos Karen!
Yes, thanks Karen; they're fantastic!
I've seen a Yellow-rumped Warbler in my backyard this winter... I'm not sure it's the same one, but I never see more than one. I was told that they are becoming more common in our area.
I've never seen a Ruby-crowned Kinglet though; I appreciate the photo, and knowing that it exists in VA, so that I have more chance of recognizing one if I see it.
Holly, lucky you that Ric shoveled your paths! I scraped just enough off the top so the paths are flat and will melt faster.
Jan, good for you for educating your grandson!
I love the sound doves make when they're startled. I hear it a lot because mine are afraid of me too. You'd think they'd catch on that we humans are friends, not foes.