Time to fire up the bird feeders!

[stevebrandle]

The waves of nasty weather this past week has made feeding wild birds quite rewarding. Just in the last week our feeders have seen: sparrows, blue jays, house finches, chickadees, gold finches (in their winter colors) mourning doves, crows, nuthatches, cardinals, juncos, woodpeckers, and squirrels.

For the cost of one bag of deer feed, you can feed wild birds for a month.

[Big Buck]

Im not sure how many birds you have around you for your seed to last a month.

I have 4 feeders and they are empty in a week when i come home from work my back yard looks like a seen from the movie the Birds.

But I love it I just moved out to the country from the city and they just do not compare. :D

[Steve]

Yeap, just bought the feed for mine, have to get it up. Moving this thread to non-game wildlife forum.

[The Nailer]

I usually feed all year and I don't know what I enjoy most, seeing the various species or matching wits w/ those VERMIN squirrels.

But a week or so ago I had an unsual experience. I was sitting in the hot tub on a Sunday afternoon enjoying an adult beverage, while trying to ease the pain of not being at camp, when from the large tree off the left of my deck something huge flew just over my head. It turned out to be a hawk going in for the kill. I heard a Blue Jay going crazy and figured he was an early dinner for the hawk. But, as I stood to see the action the hawk flew off w/ nothing in his talons and all the other critters in the yard were scattering in every direction. There is an orchard behind us and I have often seen hawks in there, but I have never had one come after the birds feeding in my yard. I would prefer he eat the skunks and groundhogs.

[Dutchman]

Hang a bird feeder by your tree stand. it sure helps pass the time.I have also had deer feeding on the spilage.EEEK, Is THAT CONCIDERED A BAIT PILE

[jamie7117]

which bird feeder would you guys recommend? looking to purchase a few quality feeders

[ice fishin' nut]

Maybe somebody that know about bird feeders can help me out....

I live in Eastpointe, and have a wife that has gone nuts on buying birdfeeders(not a problem) I also have a old lady that lives next door to me.
She is about 80, and doesnt get around very well(bad legs) Her back yard is kinda overgrown, and she has a pool that has been standing so long, that all the water has evaporated out of it.

The other day I noticed that rats have taken up residency under her pool.
Last night around 11 I pulled into my driveway, and saw 3 of the rats eating the spillage from the feeders....... Then I looked around the shed, and saw 2 big rat holes going underneath it!!!!!

Went up to Meijers, and bought 2 rat traps and set them... This morning, 1 rat dead,,,, 1 trap completly gone!!!! Should I tell the wife to quit feeding????? I have talked to the neighbor lady quite a few times, and offered to help her around the house, and she refuses.... Our shed has been here forever, and doesnt have a rat wall.
Any ideas on how to end the rat problem and keep the wife happily feeding the birds???

Thanks,
IFN:D

[stevebrandle]

I'd just keep the trap line going and eventually you'll get rid of them.

[The Nailer]

I'd put some D-con under your shed and your neighbors pool if she'll let you. You don't want it out where the squirrels can get though.

[o town]

Trapping works for a while but you only get a few and they wise up.
I get the waterproof D-Con bars and drywall screw them down in obscure places where the dogs and squirrels can't get at them. No rats.
Personally, I'd do a nighttime sojourn and stuff some bars under your neighbors' pool as you both could end up with a real problem if the infestation gets worse.
No reason to stop bird feeding, just get rid of the rats.
Steve, we are gearing up for the winter influx of MI tourist birds and we go from 15-20# in the summer to 50# of bird feed weekly. We'll take good care of them and send them back fat and sassy next spring.

o town

[stevebrandle]

o town,

I guess I didn't think about you feeding our migrating birds. What kinds do you have that show up in the winter?

I know about the "snow-birds" headin' for Disney. They bring that "green seed" to keep Florida from starving. :cool:

[o town]

We just started cataloging bird species here so I might have to continue on an ongoing basis.
The robins passed through a few weeks ago and it was brutal for a few days as they were everywhere. They must head on South as we see very few that stay.
We had a great hatch of Cardinals this spring but they mostly moved elsewhere. We had 1 that was raised 3' from our bedroom window and flight school day was hilarious until a crow showed up and almost nailed him but the parents drove it off. Crow came back and Mr. Daly and I spoke once to him. Bye bye.
A sharp-shinned hawk took a dove off one of the feeders this morning. Amazing to watch a hawk work but I wasn't quick enough with the camera. Barred owls and red-shoulder hawks are coming in and boosting local pops.. Had a half dozen owls going off down by the river last night and it sounded like recess at the assylum. Don't know how many of you have heard a barred owl coven going off, but it's spooky.
MI STORY--We came up to Black Lake for a few weeks last July and the first look at the lake had a big commotion going on. A blackbird was flying off with a fledgling Chickadee and Mom and Dad were in hot pursuit. They dislodged the chick and it fell into the lake with our Britts and Ms Lynn forming a rescue effort. It seemed OK but wet and I had little hope for it. We put it on the flat roof of the neighbor's boathouse and the parents came back. It rained a cold rain that night and I didn't think the little guy would survive but Lynn reported in that it had fallen off the roof and was in a small white pine and the parents were there. They moved it to heavier cover and it was flying the next day. Now the strange part; Lynn was doing the dishes the afternoon of first flight and she called to me. I went out and there, not a foot from the kitchen window, was a parent chickadee, hovering like a hummingbird. It hovered there, just a few feet from us and it stayed there for about 15 seconds, then it flew off. I looked at Lynn and she just smiled, "I think it was saying 'thanks'."

We have trouble identifying MI birds as their license plates are so tiny but a new spotting scope might cure that. One thing we are thankful for are all the doves you export unharmed. They end up down here after making it through OH without suffering many losses to the lousy shots there. Doves are easy to place as they dye their tail feathers the color of their favorite home state college football team. Strangely, all the blue we saw yesterday on doves seems to have faded to green

o town

[o town]

Steve,
We had 2 new pair of titmice show up yesterday and the Carolina wrens are back from God knows where.
We are in a peculiar area as we are the northern summer range for some who fly to SA for the winter and the southern winter range for some who summer up north.
The GD cowbirds are back. Useless and destructive birds.

o town

[Steve]

Got mine fired up last week and they are really hitting it hard.

[o town]

Eastern Phoebes, catbirds and chipping sparrows showed up over the holiday.
Last winter, big hits were scarlet tanangers, my first indigo bunting ever (man, they are BLUE) and my first prothonotary warbler. Lynn and I were just drifting around on the pond in the johnboat when we saw it. Gorgeous bird.
I'm still puzzled about the cardinals. I finally saw 1 today, but we counted 5 nests on the place in May and we had them everywhere.
Good watching, everybody!

o town

[Hamilton Reef]

I have one big bird feeder which is a gravity design turkey feeder that holds 100# corn. It sits in the back yard under 100W sodium light with a photoeye that is mounted on my former 48' TV tower. This setup is next to the pond in my clover patch that will need replanting next spring. I can watch the turkeys (and all the other birds) during the day and watch the deer at night. This is a great view even at night.

Note that this setup is legal as the turkey feeder is on top of a 4'x8' plywood table about 5' above the ground. This separates the corn feeder from the deer (TB regulations) and what corn the turkeys kick off for the deer is very little. It is fun watching the deer stand on their hind feet trying to get to the feeder, but they never learn to jump up on the table like the turkeys.