Birdfeeders

There is absolutely no harm done when feeding birds, as long as bird feeders and bird baths are kept clean. The only “unnatural” thing you are doing is increasing the number of birds visiting your yard and after all, that is the point of having bird feeders! Some people worry that birds will not migrate if we provide a ready supply of food. This is absolutely not true. When it is time to go, they will leave regardless of how much food is still available. Alas, even though we have 2 Oriole feeders that have been in constant use, the males have already begun to leave, so the females and youngsters will not be here much longer.

I love watching hummingbirds at our hummingbird feeders, but ants can be a real problem. Ants also love the sweet nectar that we feed to the hummingbirds. Over the years, I have tried moving the hummingbird feeders around to try to stay ahead of the ants, tried washing the hummingbird feeders daily, etc. but really, only one thing has worked. It is ingenius in its simplicity. It is simply a small cup that you hang above the hummingbird feeder and fill with water. The ants have no way of getting around it to the feeder! It is a really inexpensive solution that I use above our Oriole feeders as well.

I love watching the growing nestlings learning to eat from our bird feeders! This morning, quail parents and their 5 offspring made their way to our ground platform feeder. I have been keeping it stocked with millet hoping to entice them in and it finally worked! Young Grosbeaks have become regulars at our hanging platform feeder. The young Orioles and hummingbirds are visiting our nectar feeders. There are people who think there is no need to have bird feeders up during the summer months, but watching the young birds discover the feeders is one of the joys of summer! Feeding birds in the summer, you actually “teach” young birds where to return the following spring for a reliable food source.

I love to keep experimenting with new foods in our platform bird feeder. A platform feeder is easy to use for this for you can put a variety of foods on display for the birds to choose from and quickly see what they liked and what they left. In our feeders, red millet seems to be always left so I don’t even buy it anymore. I just found an inexpensive local source for sunflower chips and they are a huge hit, especially with acorn woodpeckers. We were seeing them at our feeders only occasionally, but the sunflower chips have 3 acorn woodpeckers visiting the platform bird feeder regularly throughout the day. We are also seeing more Grosbeaks than ever before.

Like most people, I haven’t been fond of having lots of blue jays visit our bird feeders. However, they serve a couple of quite useful purposes. Most important, they are expert watchdogs. If any danger appears in the area, blue jays are almost always the first to sound an alarm. Other birds know this as well, for they immediately race for cover when a blue jay signals danger. Because of their aggressive nature, they are always the first to approach a new bird feeder or bird bath in our yard. A new hanging platform bird feeder was filled with a variety of seeds, but remained untouched until a brave blue jay decided to check it out. After he feasted for a while, another blue jay approached and before long, the platform bird feeder was a popular stop for many species.

There have been many changes in bird populations this century that are attributed to our feeding of birds. Most obvious is how the extra food provided during cold winter months has made it possible for many birds to stay further North. Some species are actually far more numerous than they were 50 years ago. This has happened in spite of the destruction of habitats and the contaminating effect of pesticides. We have seen this in our own yard. We put up our first oriole bird feeder 3 years ago and were fortunate enough to attract 2 pair of Orioles. Now, 3 years later, we have had to put up a second oriole bird feeder for there has been so much competition at the feeder. We often can count 6-8 orioles in the yard at a time, all trying to get time at the feeders!

As food becomes more scarce as the dry summer continues, we are seeing more activity at our bird feeders so the “pecking order” becomes much more apparent. Our platform feeder is often shared by multiple species, but only because the leaders allow it. Early this morning I watched an Acorn Woodpecker and a purple finch both feeding at the platform feeder, but an arriving Scrub Jay sent both of them up to the nearby trees. Then a Stellar Jay tried to approach and was quickly sent on his way. Only when the Scrub Jay left did the other birds approach the platform feeder again. Flying to nearby cover is a common practice for the less aggressive birds. They just wait their turn and eventually manage to approach the bird feeders.

Now that fledglings are actively approaching bird feeders, the competition is changing the dynamics at the feeders. In our yard, this is conspicuous at the Oriole bird feeder. This morning there was one male at the oriole feeder with 6 fledglings nearby fighting for a turn. After a couple minutes of this bickering, the male had had enough and chased them all away! Then he came back for a peaceful drink. As soon as he was gone, the others were back, fighting each other for a chance at the oriole bird feeder. I have ordered another Oriole feeder which should arrive in the next day or two, so we are anxious to see how adding a second feeder will change the dynamics in the yard.

Feeding hummingbirds is fun, interesting and the easiest thing in the world to do. These aggressive little birds will happily visit a hummingbird feeder hung right outside your window or even on your window. Just buy a hummingbird feeder and the rest is so simple. Just fill it with a nectar made of 4 parts clean water and one part regular white sugar. There is nothing else to buy and no mess to clean up under the hummingbird feeder. If ants become a problem, simply add an ant moat above the hanging hummingbird feeder. If you attract so many hummers that they are chasing each other away from the feeder, simply add another feeder to lessen the competition. Watching these gorgeous little birds is fun for the entire family.