Tag Archives: chickadee

Decluttering Your Bird Feeders… Or Not

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Much has been written about decluttering lately. And so, of course, my thoughts turn to bird feeders.

A common bit of wisdom regarding decluttering is to ask yourself if an item brings you Joy.

Cylinder Feeders

Blue Jay on Cylinder Feeder (Photo by Lisa Vreede)

When I fill my cylinder feeder with a new No-Mess seed cylinder, I notice Blue Jays coming in groups. Perhaps the first jay to discover the gleaming peanuts will stand atop the pole and give a little bounce up and down as he calls to the others in his tribe. Then the hammering begins; the birds’ feet holding on tightly, their heads moving back and forth, excavating each peanut with precision. Then off the Jay flies to a branch to eat its prize. Or maybe it plans to stash the peanuts. The flurry of blue from feeder to tree branches is so beautiful to watch.

Okay – Joy with the cylinder feeder… keep it!

Suet Feeders

Pileated Woodpecker on Double Tail Prop Feeder

Then I consider my suet feeders. I have a lot of those. Tail prop feeders – I have two of the extra-large version. Last time I filled them with Nuts and Berries Suet I was in Boyne City, and when I was done, I called out to the woods ,“Hey Buddy (my male Pileated Woodpecker’s  given name), I just filled the feeders for you!” And I kid you not; within two minutes, he flew into the woods along the road and hammered away at one of his favorite trees, doing some serious excavation. Then, as I backed away from the feeders, he came in on his landing tree. By the time I was in the house, I had the Pileated Woodpecker on one of the double tail-prop suet feeders, and a Hairy Woodpecker on the other one.

Okay –  true Joy with the double tail-prop suet feeders – keep them. All of them.

Finch Feeders

American Goldfinches

Next I reflect on my finch feeders. Yes, that’s plural as well. This past winter, it was so exciting to watch for finches of all varieties. The Winter Finch Forecast predicted we would have many irruptions into our area. This happens when seed crops are not optimal in Ontario, so irregularly occurring species move south in search of plentiful food sources. Pine Siskins can be identified at a distance by their very pointy beaks, looking like just-sharpened pencils. Careful observations need to be made to notice the potential Common Redpoll – such a dainty bird with the sweetest red cap. Of course, these winter visitors mix in well with American Goldfinches who visit the feeders all year long. As we move into spring, I watch my goldfinches carefully with binoculars to note when I see the first hint of yellow feathers as they molt into spring plumage.

Joy with the finch feeders – keep those too!

Hopper Feeders

Female Northern Cardinal at Hopper Feeder

Time to evaluate the large hopper feeder, which holds an abundance of seed. I am relieved when the birds visit first thing in the morning, proof they made it through another challenging night. I feel so fortunate to be able to provide them with readily available food that has no shells, allowing for quick energy. If it’s cold enough, birds can go through all of their fat reserves in one night just to keep alive.

More Joy with the foundational hopper feeder – keep it.

Specialty Feeders

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Photo by Bill Rapai)

Then there is the peanut feeder, a draw for specific birds. It is certainly a favorite of Red-breasted Nuthatches that cling on upside-down.  I love to watch their bodies teeter back and forth like little sledge hammers as they pound away to extract a peanut. They make the dearest sounds, similar to small squeak toys. It has been an irruptive season for Red-breasted Nuthatches and I wouldn’t want to miss a moment of them.

Joy with my peanut feeder – keep it!

Tufted Titmouse on Dinner Bell Feeder

Finally, my thoughts turn to the variety of foods I offer the birds when I’m in a time crunch. For example, I can simply open a bag of Bark Butter Bits and pour them into my Dinner Bell feeder. This feeder is the most versatile and I dare say one of my absolute favorites. I can lower the weather dome so just the smaller birds fit between the tray and the dome, even excluding House Sparrows if low enough. It gives the Black-capped Chickadees a place they can dart to, picking up the beak-sized Bark Butter Bit and flying off to a branch. It is so fun to watch as they hold it in their feet and eat it with dainty bites. The Dinner Bell is also great for mealworm feeding. Mealworms give birds the protein they need for feather production when molting and for calcium when they are ready for egg-laying season.

Okay – Joy with my Dinner Bell Feeder – keep them.  Both of them.

So much for ridding myself of the “clutter” of bird feeders. Anything that bring me this much Joy is a keeper!

Winter Tree Birds

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After spring and summer, the majority of birds in Michigan leave for the south. Their instincts pull them to return to wherever they have a full diet of insects and fruits. Those winter birds that stay for the colder months are marvels at finding food. What can they possibly eat? How do they find food?

Black-capped Chickadee

Chickadees: The Flock Masters

Whenever I hear the calls of Chickadees in winter, their “dee dees” catching my attention, I know to look for them if I want to locate other winter birds. The Chickadees are what I call the “Flock Masters”. Very hardy and inquisitive, they are usually the first to locate a food source, whether natural foods or those found at feeders. Other birds are keen to the Chickadees’ ability to find food.

Downy Woodpeckers, Tufted Titmice, White-breasted Nuthatches and Brown Creepers make up the companion group that follow Black-capped Chickadees as they forage for food. Even those birds that come to our feeders for sunflower, suet and peanuts will continue to forage for natural foods. They eat what protein they can find, including insect eggs and cocoons, in addition to the insects hidden within the trees. They perform a great service as they keep our trees healthy and strong.

White-breasted Nuthatch

Working on the tiny twigs of the trees is the smallest of the team, the Black-capped Chickadee. The ability to hang upside down and investigate with their sharp eyesight and small, probing beaks enables them to find the eggs and hiding insects on the smallest of twigs.

 

Tufted Titmice: The Cousins

The Tufted Titmouse, a cousin to the Black-capped Chickadee, is a little larger and can focus its energy on the larger twigs. They work more slowly and usually move around in mated pairs. Their comparatively louder calls ring out clearly in the winter time, as “Peter, Peter” or “Cheer, Cheer, Cheer.” Titmice are also adept at hanging on to branches in an acrobatic manner. Sometimes when they are very intent on their food gathering, their head crest will remain down. At other times, the feathers of their crest become erect as a warning. Perhaps they feel a hawk is in the area or a squirrel is getting too close to their food source and they do not want to share.

Tufted Titmouse (Photo by John Graffius)

Downy Woodpeckers: The Listeners

The Downy Woodpecker is an even larger bird in the team of Winter Tree Birds. They work on the limbs and larger branches of the tree. Not only do they look for insects, eggs and cocoons on the branches of the trees, they listen for the sound of insects moving inside the trees. This is why you may watch a Downy Woodpecker clinging to the side of the tree, moving its head from side to side – it is listening for the insects. Once it locates them, it uses its small beak to chisel a hole and extract the insects inside. A woodpecker has special tools for this function, a barbed tongue with sticky saliva that is excellent for extracting the insects it finds.

Downy Woodpecker

Nuthatches & Creepers: The Bark Bandits

The deep cracks in the bark of some trees are a perfect place to find cocoons, insects, and eggs, sheltered from rain and snow. This is where the White-breasted Nuthatch and Brown Creeper are very adept – their beaks well-suited to the job. White-breasted Nuthatches have a thin dagger-like bill that is slightly upturned on the bottom edge to create an angle, perfect for the type of feeding it does. When seeking food, the Nuthatch travels upside down and from top to bottom on the tree trunks. This allows them to find the food the right-side-up birds do not see.

On the other end of the spectrum is the Brown Creeper, who can be identified by its behaviors. Flying from one tree to another, the Brown Creeper lands at the base of the tree and work its way up, searching along the bark for food, and circling the tree as it climbs. Its long, needle-like bill allows for deep probing within the nooks and crannies of trees. This bird eats only insects in the winter – an admirable accomplishment.

Brown Creeper (Photo by Jerry Jourdan)

Brown Creeper

The Black-capped Chickadee takes care of the tiny twigs, the Tufted Titmouse gleans from the larger twigs, the Downy Woodpecker from limbs and branches and the White-breasted Nuthatch and Brown Creeper take from the trunks and larger branches of the trees, travelling in opposite directions. By working as a team, these five species of birds help to keep our trees healthy and strong.

Enjoy your birds!!

Rosann Kovalcik, Owner

Wild Birds Unlimited, Grosse Pointe Woods

 

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The Joy of Listening

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Working in the garden in the summer can be a delightful experience when we pay attention to the sounds of the birds. It’s educational and entertaining to concentrate on birds sounds and look for the stories behind them. You’ll be surprised at what you can learn just by listening, finding joy in the process.

A Morning In the Garden: The Birdsong Begins!

Blue Jay (Photo by John Graffius)

This morning I heard a conversation between a family of Blue Jays, murmuring to each other with a tone that reminded me of an interplay between The Three Stooges. They seemed to be comparing notes about where they would go to find food. Later, I heard the familiar “Jay! Jay!”  Were they sounding the “jay alarm” for the good of the group, because of a threat of some kind? Or was this practice just a “fire drill”?

House Wrens are singing less compared to the constant song which announced their arrival back in May. It seems my neighborhood wren gives an earnest song just once or twice these days, and nothing more. Done nesting, there is no need to advertise territory.

House Wren (Photo by Jerry Jourdan)

Afternoon Sounds

At this moment, the Robins are the most vocal. Two spot-breasted youngsters are incessantly reminding mom they are hungry. The young can be easily located by their shrill “peek” calls. Mom is quite silent as she searches continuously for food. This is very different from her morning routine. At daybreak, I hear her frantically repeating, “peek, peek, tut, tut.” She does not stop until both youngsters respond, a way to let her know they made it through the night.

Heard but not easily seen are my neighborhood Northern Flickers, White-breasted Nuthatches and Chickadees. All of them are making contact calls between adults and fledglings, giving clues as to where they are feeding. The nuthatches seem to be in the most constant contact – soft and repeated many times. Maybe this serves as encouragement to the young, that they are doing well finding the bugs they need.

The Northern Cardinal definitely has a second brood of young. How do I know? His song is constant in the neighborhood. He sings from perches in the yards that surround mine, as well as from two places in my yard. These singing points define his territory. When he is closest to the nest site, I can hear the female sing back to him from her place on the nest. Cardinals are one of the few bird species that engage in counter-singing between the pair.

Male & Female Cardinals (Photo by Christopher Goodhue)

Song & Dance

American Goldfinches are in full-on breeding mode. A male makes his presence known, taking flight from the neighbors’ birch trees, singing “per chicory” over and over as he flies. His flight is undulating, a gentle loop up and down, singing continuously. I watch him define his territory, cutting diagonally across my yard, then over two yards, then across towards the fringe of Ferry Elementary property and back to the birch trees. This display is gently repeated about every fifteen minutes.

American Goldfinch (Photo by Rodney Campbell)

 

Bird Sounds at Dusk

High-pitched calls in the trees overhead give away the presence of Cedar Waxwings. If I watch the area where they are calling long enough, I will eventually see the family group leave in flight together, off to another feeding stop.

As evening approaches, I hear the familiar chatter of Chimney Swifts. Gladly, I take a break from the garden and look up, admiring the family group of six that are flying in unison. Soon after, I know I will hear the Common Nighthawk’s raspy display call, a sound I will dearly miss once they have migrated this fall.

Make your next venture into the yard an auditory experience – you may be amazed at the Joy that listening brings!

 

Enjoy your Birds!

Rosann Kovalcik, Owner

Wild Birds Unlimited

Grosse Pointe Woods

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