Feathered Friends

I've been filling the bird feeders twice daily of late; my small feathered friends are plowing through an amazing amount of seed. I feed starting in late fall and ending mid to late spring, thinking that birds need to be able to forage for themselves in milder seasons. I'm religious in filing the feeders; birds become dependent on them for their food, and can easily starve or freeze if their food source vanishes.

I began feeding birds when I had (indoor) cats, as a form of cat TV. I quickly realized that watching the birds was as much fun for me as it was for the cats. It's entrancing to see how animated and curious birds are -- and also that many feed during specific time slots. Darwin proved correct again.

Finches, doves, sparrows, chickadees are all frequent guests; occasionally I'll see a flash of red or a splash of blue (and hear the raucous cry of a jay). A couple of weeks ago I was delighted to see 5 glorious cardinals and at least 4 females in the bushes. Wonderful to see that crimson contrast against winter white and grey.

Unlike last year, when I had the fattest squirrels in the neighborhood, there have been no squirrels raiding the feeders. Squirrels are territorial, and either a fox or one of the areas many coyotes got the fluff-tailed creatures who were living here in the fall.

There is at least one squirrel that lives at the bottom of the property. I assumed he'd come up and start dining on black oil seed. However, I've watched as he (she?) keeps a strict boundary between the lower part of the yard and the expanse that stretches to the trees that are strung with feeders.

I'm happy to be feeding just birds this winter! Squirrels can chew through the most sturdy of feeders, and I've got several that have been repaired numerous times. And while black oil and nyjer seed consumption is up, it's the birds that are enjoying the food.