The Zen Birdfeeder

Help Produce the Passenger Pigeon Documentary "From Billions to None"

Last fall, I wrote a post entitled "Too Many Doves", which was to illustrate that the Mourning Dove population of 400 million birds shouldn't be taken for granted, a point proven by the extinction of a bird that used to number in the billions: the Passenger Pigeon.

Passenger Pigeon specimens at Cornell Lab of Ornithology

As a result of the background reading I did for that post, I now have a heightened interest in all things Passenger Pigeon.  That's why I want to tell you about an exciting documentary currently being created by the Project Passenger Pigeon group. 

The message of my original post was that there is a lesson to be learned from the extinction of a species that was so numerous that its mass flights would literally darken the skies.  This is one of the goals of Project Passenger Pigeon as well.  Right now, they are hard at work on a documentary called "From Billions to None: The Passenger Pigeon's Flight to Extinction".  Here's where you can help.

The project has launched a Crowdfunding Campaign to help fund the film's production.  Check out the campaign page where you can see a trailer of the film.  If you are able, please join me in helping this film become reality by making a donation.  There are many contribution levels available, and I'm sure they'd appreciate anything you can give.

I know that I'm looking forward to seeing the finished documentary!

 

5 Tips to Attracting Orioles into your Yard

One of the first questions we ask customers who come in our shop hoping to attract orioles is whether they've seen them in their area before.  If they answer "no", we usually suggest they watch for them and pick up a feeder when they know they have the proper habitat for orioles.

If they say "yes, I saw them last year" or "yes, I've seen their unmistakable pendulous nest in a nearby tree", we then encourage them to try an oriole feeder.

If you can answer "yes" to my question, here are my top 5 tips for attracting orioles into your yard.

1)  Have the oriole feeder up and ready BEFORE they arrive.
In our area of east central New York state, that means putting out an oriole feeder near the beginning of May.

2)  Hang the feeder so it's visible from the treetops.
Orioles are treetop birds, so make sure you hang your oriole feeder where they would be most likely to see it from their perches at the top of deciduous trees.

3)  Offer fruit.
Oranges are the easiest food to offer orioles at a birdfeeder.  Cut them in half so the insides are up.
You can also offer grape jelly.  Orioles have a sweet tooth and will eat mounds of grape jelly daily.  Don't make the jelly pile too deep, just in case some other smaller bird with a sweet tooth gets into it.

4)  Offer mealworms.
Orioles eat insects, especially tent caterpillars, and will eat live mealworms offered in a birdfeeder.

5)  Offer nectar.
Orioles will lap up nectar, but because of the size of their bill, it needs to be in a specialty oriole feeder that has ports bigger than those on a hummingbird feeder.
The nectar concentration is weaker too, 8-to-1 instead of the hummingbird nectar ratio of 4-to-1.  Check out the nectar recipe page on our website.

At our Wild Birds Unlimited shop, we have a number of oriole feeders for providing these foods.

So, get those feeders out and watch for that stunning flash of orange and black of the beautiful male oriole!

Photo credits: 
Image 1 & 2 - WBU Inc. image library
Image 3 - Mary Foss Bullard, WBU-Saratoga's Fan PIC of the YEAR 2012.

They're Not Late, You're Just Early!

It's only the first week in May and already we're wondering where the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are.  Well, they're busy migrating.  They're probably right on schedule.  We're just antsy!!

Here are my hummingbird return dates for the last 7 years:

2006 - May 9
2007 - May 6
2008 - May 9
2009 - May 10
2010 - May 9
2011 - May 4
2012 - May 4

All those dates work out to a May 7 average return date.  So they're probably right on time.  They're flying as fast as they can!

So keep that feeder up and the nectar fresh, and relax....they're on their way!

Note: these return dates are from my location here at 43rd latitude and 1,345 feet.

FAQ - If Squirrels Don't Like Niger Seed, Why Do They Chew My Finch Sock?

Q. If squirrels don't like niger (thistle) seed, why do they chew my finch sock?

A. When squirrels chew a hole in your finch sock, they're curious about the food inside.  But once they find out it's something they don't like, they stop.

In the meantime, the seed is lost and they've destroyed your sock. 

Eliminate frustration by getting a finch feeder with metal parts.  You won't have to be buying new socks all the time!

Bluebirds by the Numbers - 3rd edition

Eastern Bluebird
by WBU Customer Rita Sweenor. Thanks Rita!

4-6    The number of eggs typically layed

1-3    The number of broods bluebirds may have each breeding season.
     
70    percent of all bluebirds die before reaching their first birthday.

10    years old was the age of the oldest recorded Eastern Bluebird.
   
50    yards is the distance a bluebird can spot caterpillars and insects in tall grass.
   
90    percent was the decline in Eastern Bluebird population during the late 1800s and much of the twentieth century.

12    percent of their body weight is consumed by bluebirds each day.  (This is equivalent to a two hundred pound human eating 24 pounds of food each day.)

Read more Bluebirds by the Numbers, 1st Edition and 2nd Edition.

Zen's 6th Anniversary

April 1st marks the sixth anniversary of The Zen Birdfeeder blog.  And while my posts have slowed somewhat because of work demands, I just can't seem to retire from blogging.

About a month ago, I came close.  I was thinking about why I do this and who I'm doing it for.  Would The Zen Birdfeeder be missed in any way whatsoever if I just stopped writing?  I came to the conclusion that I might just let Zen fade away into cyberspace.

I was going through a period when I was just not finding the motivation or the inspiration to keep the blog going.  Running a retail business is time consuming enough without adding the demands of social media.  A post or two a day on Facebook is not quite as demanding as writing a blog post 3 or 4 times a week.  98% of what you read on this blog and 99% of the images are mine and mine alone.  If I don't get behind the camera and if I don't write, nothing happens here.  And these days, an individual publishing a bird blog qualifies as a rare bird alert.

In his assessment of "The State of the Bird Blogosphere", Corey Finger of 10,000 Birds remarks, "There has been an acceleration...to group blogging and blogs with an institution behind them."

The Zen Birdfeeder is one of only 3 individually-written bird blogs among the Top 10 on the Nature Blog Network.  Corey was right when he referred to this endeavor as a "labor of love", and that "it is nearly impossible for an individual to keep up with the amount of content a group can generate and a single voice gets lonely compared to the chorus that a group can provide."  I bet they wish I'd just go away with my stories of chickadees and titmice and blue jays and leave the bird blogging for the "serious" birders.

But I love the niche I write for - folks passionate about the birds but who love seeing birds right in their own yard.  Folks who don't consider themselves serious "birders", but are serious "birdwatchers".  I love representing that niche!

And the birds keep me going.  I love watching birds.  Not "seeing" birds, but "watching" birds.  I love observing little things about them and then sharing those little things on this blog.  I'm not a scientist, I don't necessarily know all the whys behind the things birds do, but I enjoy watching them and think you do too.

So I'll continue on.  I'll snoop on a chickadee preening itself deep in my rhododendren, try to take some photographs of it, and then share it with you.  Little things, just like that.  I hope you continue to enjoy what I share and that in return, you'll share your thoughts with me.

Thanks for being here since April 2007!

Is It Spring Yet? Some Say Yes, Some Say Not Yet!

Most of us are just programmed to believe that spring will begin around March 20th.  But in fact there are a number of definitions of when spring begins.  I'm not going to get in depth but just cut to the bone: 

• The "spring begins on March 20th" definition is based on the date of the vernal equinox, an ASTRONOMICAL definition based on the earth's position in relation to the sun.
• The "spring begins on March 1st" definition is based on a METEOROLOGICAL definition, which is based on temperatures. 

There are even more interpretations out there, but these are the two most common.  Bottom line is that there has been no official decree or law setting the date, so you get to decide. 

For me, with all the changes going on in nature already, especially with the birds, I say "it's already spring!" 

Now watch another snowstorm happen.....

Sources:  Old Farmers Almanac, Accuweather.com

FAQ - How Long Will Cardinals Strike our Windows?

Q. How long will the cardinal in our backyard persist in striking against our windows?

A. The behavior will last through the breeding season.  But in some individuals it may go on year-round, for years.  It's a territorial reaction to seeing, in its own reflection, an intruder on its turf.

Covering the windows with screens will help, but the bird may just move to another window. You may try screening, or plastic wrap on the ouside surfaces of the window. Another temporary solution is to soap the outside of window to break up the reflection.

Remove any perches from which the bird can see itself in the windows. And continue to harass the bird to try to shock it out of its pattern of territoriality. (Spraying the bird with the garden hose may work, and rubber snakes hung by the windsows sometimes do the trick.)

Adapted from material in the Winter 2005 edition of WBU BIRDTracks®

How you Can Help Birds "Make Hay While the Sun Shines"

The expression "make hay while the sun shines" has its origins in an old proverb from the 16th century, but we see the expression in action every winter day. 

The expression means to make the most of one's opportunities while you have the chance.  And each winter day the birds in our yard must "make hay while the sun shines":  they must eat enough food in the short daylight hours in order to survive the upcoming night.

Bitter winter nights require little birds to use more fat just to produce enough heat to stay warm.  So every day, they have to eat enough high-calorie food to provide energy to last 24 hours.  A little bird that doesn't take in enough calories during the day can deplete all its fat and die of hypothermia in a single frigid night.

And birds expend precious energy just gathering the calories they'll need.  Looking for food expends energy and even opening or manipulating the food they find expends energy.

Your birdfeeders filled with high fat foods like suet, seed and nuts can help birds make the most of their daylight hours.  They recognize an easy source of quality high-calorie food and will take advantage of it, especially when temperatures drop.  They'll be there first thing in the morning until the last bit of daylight, packing on the weight to make it through the night...then start all over again the next morning!!

A Little Zen Acceptance of House Sparrows

A guest post by WBU-Saratoga Springs NY Sales Associate, Linda Miner

If you live in town, House Sparrows will probably be a fact of life at your birdfeeders.

You can try to discourage them by offering only niger seed in mesh feeders and suet in cages.  But in the absence of other easy food sources, they may even find a way to feed from these feeders that are typically harder for them to use.

So you may just try to make peace with their constant presence, as I have.  Maybe these ideas that work for me will help you as well.

Try Ground Feeding

White millet or WBU Select Blend broadcast on the ground may encourage House Sparrows to eat more on the ground and less on the birdfeeders.

One benefit of this approach is that you may find that your ground feeding may also invite native sparrows like Song Sparrows, Fox Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrows, American Tree Sparrows, and Chipping Sparrows.  Their distinctive backward-scratching foraging method will help you distinguish native sparrows from House Sparrows.

Appreciate Their Plumage

Take some time to look at the intricate plumage on their back and wings.  Or try to think of them as cute LBJs (Little Brown Jobs)!

Enjoy the Level of Activity at your Feeders

House Sparrows travel in big flocks so you'll always have birds at your feeders!  They'll bathe in big flocks too; it's fun to watch the pool party.

So even if you don't come to love House Sparrows, you may start to enjoy them and show a little zen acceptance to their presence!

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My thanks to Linda for her very zen-like guest post!