Birdfeeders

Most of the country is experiencing cold weather now, so we will see much different bird behavior than we see at other times of the year. Certainly, our yard has become a very busy place all day long, not just morning and evening. Today the temperature never went above 40. We had so many birds feeding all day that I had to fill all 4 feeders twice and even scattered seed on the ground. The tube feeder filled with black oil sunflower seeds had birds at all ports most of the time. This is a good time to remember some basic facts about birds and cold weather. No, birds will not freeze to death if the temperature goes below 0. They eat all day in order to store fat to keep them warm during the long nights. At night, they fluff up their feathers to trap body heat and their metabolism slows in order to conserve energy. Keep those hanging bird feeders full to help your local bird populations! If you plan to go away for the holidays, try to have a friend keep your tube feeders full. If this isn’t possible, the birds that normally feed in your yard will quickly move on to someone else’s yard and bird feeders.

When we put up our first bird feeders, we were thrilled just to see birds visiting them. It didn’t take long to ask the question, what kind of a bird is that? And that? The first thing to do is buy a good bird identification book for the birds in your area. If your bird feeders are not very close to your windows, a pair of binnoculars is also helpful. The biggest problem for a beginner trying to identify a bird is being overwhelmed by details. If there is a bird visiting your tube bird feeder, don’t try to memorize everything about the bird in the short time it sits on your tube feeder. Instead, focus on the bird’s bill and face. The shape of the bill will help you identify a broad group of species the bird belongs to. The face and bill are distinctively marked in most birds so this information should help you identify your bird. The next time you see this bird, watch it’s behavior around the tube bird feeder as well as behaviors around the yard. Also begin to notice the size and shape of its body and tail so you learn to identify it even at a distance. Follow this basic pattern and you will be amazed at how quickly you will learn to identify birds in your yard.