Tom's Bird Feeders and Reptile Supplies

Finches are the true vegetarians of the bird world.  While many different bird species enjoy a good seed, most feed on insects when they are available in the summer and usually feed their young insects because of the high protein content.  This is not so when it comes to the finches.  They prefer seeds year round and I can see them reacting as you or I would if we caught a bug in our mouths.  If fact if a Brown-headed Cowbird lays its egg in a goldfinch nest the young cowbird usually does not live past about three days.  They cannot survive on the totally vegetarian diet.

Finches use what I call the”cling and peck” method to feed.  These small birds can cling to the head of a flower and peck at the seeds.  Now these flowers do not have to be sturdy like a sunflower and can be as fragile as a blanket flower.  In fact most finches enjoy seeds from any of the composite family of flowers.

Now that you have the facts you need to back you stance, I would like to offer you the opportunity to do more bird watching.  We all wish that we had more time to go bird watching, I mean would you rather mow your lawn or go bird watching?  Would you rather deadhead the flowers in the garden or go bird watching?  Would you rather dig weeds out of you yard or go bird watching? 

What?   You think your neighbors might object to your yard?  Well, tell them you are doing your part to protect the wild birds.  After all who doesn’t like goldfinches?  They eat the seed heads of thistles and dandelion, so you have to be green and feed the birds.  No, you can’t deadhead the flowers in your garden, you must let them go to seed- to feed the finches.  Trim your shrubs?  What if there is a finch nest in that shrub?  Mow your lawn?  What if that exposes the fledglings to the neighbors cat?  They need places to hide!  I’m sure you see how this is supposed to work.  And it does work for us. 

Of course our closest neighbor is a 1/4 mile away…..

We do enjoy our quail at our bird feeders here in Portal, Arizona.  We normally get good numbers of Gambel’s Quail and Scaled Quail in our yard.  We are located in a transition zone between the grasslands enjoyed by the Scaled Quail and the shrubby foothills preferred by the Gambel’s Quail.  Quail are what we in the bird feeding business call scratchers.  That means that they like to scratch on the ground for the seeds that they eat.  We found out a long time ago that if we just tossed the seed out on the ground for the quail that soon we had a variety of rodent pests coming around to feed there also.  At that time we started using platform bird feeders.  These flat feeders hold the seed far enough off the ground that the rodents cannot get into it and still accommodates the scratching instincts of our quail.  We have seen as many as 12 quail on these feeders at one time.  Even the babies can get up to them at about 10-14 days old.

Speaking of baby quail we just had our first family of Gambel’s Quail in the day before yesterday.  Mom and Dad had 15 young ones in a downy mob at our four tiered bird pond.  The young ones had no trouble jumping up onto the platform feeders to eat with the parents.  Yesterday, our first family of Scaled Quail came in with 8 youngsters.  These little guys looked like a cotton balls on toothpick legs and were only a couple of days old.  They also drank from the bird pond, but were unable to jump up to the platform feeders yet.  Usually by this time we are feeding from 60-80 baby quail a day but this has been a slow year for them.  It has been our experience that the quail fail to nest normally during unusually dry years.  While this has not been as dry as some years, weather predictions are rather dire for this year when it comes to precipitation.  Maybe the quail are trying to tell us something.

Portal, Arizona is a place that most dedicated bird watchers visit at least once, most several times and those who don’t mind the desert habitat (but it’s a dry heat) come more often. We quite often find people standing at our gate trying to see what is at our bird feeders. Normally we try to visit with these birders, as most are really nice people.

Yesterday we noticed a car barely pulling down our road, backing up, then pulling barely in again. After watching this odd behavior for a while we wandered up our road to see what was going on. They were a bird watching couple and the wife was trying to get the car angled so her husband could see our feeders without crossing into the acreage we have fenced off. He had a problem with mobility and getting in and out of the car was difficult. We, of course asked them to pull down our road and park so most of the bird feeders could be observed.

They noticed that we have three recycled oriole feeders hung around our yard, and asked how many orioles we have at one time. Now we get the Scott’s, Bullocks, and Hooded Orioles visiting us for grape jelly, oranges and sugar water just about constantly during the day , but we use the feeders to feed more than just orioles.

These feeders have plastic cups that can be filled with just about anything your imagination can think of and that birds will eat. We currently have one oriole feeder with jelly in one cup and peanut butter in the other with orange halves on the pegs. This feeder is visited by not only the orioles, but can attract wrens, chickadees, nuthatches, titmice, warblers, tanagers, woodpeckers and in our yard towhees, thrashers and several species of sparrows.

In the second recycled oriole feeder we have mealworms and raisins with apple on the pegs. All the insect and fruit eating birds favor this feeder. Species this food attracts includes bluebird, cardinals, wrens, chickadees, nuthatches, robins, titmice, warblers, mockingbirds, tanagers, orioles and woodpeckers. We have also had flycatchers visit in our yard.

In the third oriole feeder we have crushed egg shell and fruit we let get a little soft without actually being spoiled. This feeder attracts just about every bird that passes through our yard.

We have had people who have more jays than us tell us about filling the cups with crumbled dog food and people who have grated their suet blocks and used the cups to hold it to make it easier for the kinglets.

The recycled oriole feeder is one of the most versatile feeders we have. Maybe we should rename this feeder. Any suggestions?

During the past couple of weeks we have been conducting Breeding Bird Surveys on the Coronado National Forest here in southeastern Arizona.  We conduct four of these surveys with one each in the Peloncillo Mountains and the Dragoon Mountains and two in the Chiricahua Mountains.  These counts are part of a nationwide system of similar counts, all conducted on a standardized basis, with the intent of showing population fluctuations of birds in general or any given species in a given area.  They are conducted in the same place at roughly the same time every year.

These routes have already been randomly laid out by computer and consist of a starting point (Stop 1) with 49 more points each 1/2 mile apart.  Basically it is a linear transect 24 1/2 miles long.  At each point the counter counts all of the birds he sees or hears within a three minute time period.  At the end of three minutes he moves to the next stop 1/2 mile away.  Birds observed or heard after the three minutes or between stops do not count.  This goes on for the 50 survey stops of each route.  Each route has a designated starting time which is 1/2 hour before official sunrise and most end before 10:00 AM in the morning.  Each stop should remain constant from year to year and many Breeding Bird Survey conductors GPS the stop locations.  Also, it is not permissible to use audio recordings, pishing or any other method to coax the birds.

As you can see, Breeding Bird Surveys are technical and, I must admit, a drier form of bird watching.  However, the knowledge we get from them can be immense.  It was Breeding Bird Survey data that told us of the dramatic decline in numbers of individuals of many prairie species.  We have 15 years of data on our counts.  While the same species still reside on our sites, we have noted declines in numbers of individuals of many species.  However, this year we had a number of Botteri’s Sparrows, a grassland species on one of our counts.  We had never had them on any of our counts before and their arrival probably coincided with the breaking of a 30+ year drought a couple of years ago.  Areas which have not had grass since the 1940s now have luxerient grass over 4 feet tall.  Now this population fluctuation is documented by this survey.

Now that you know a little about Breeding Bird Surveys, it is time to decide if you would want to do one.  Nancy and I were doing about 20 a year at one time and have conducted them in South Dakota, Wyoming, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee.  Routes are available in all 50 states.  All you need to conduct a count is a reliable automobile, a pair of binoculars, a notepad and pencil and the ability to know the local birds by sight and sound.  If you think a Breeding Bird Survey is for you, you may contact the Breeding Bird Survey Office at (301) 497-5843 and they will refer you to your state’s coordinator.  Are you up to the task?

“Listen, listen. I hear something.” I said poking Tom in the ribs. 

“I don’t hear anything,” Tom mumbled trying to hear what the announcer was saying about the foul in the soccer game he was watching.

“Mute the TV, and listen!” I insisted.

Tom muted the television and with a frown pretended to listen while most of his concentration was on the soccer game.

Finally the sound was repeated. Now Tom’s frown deepened.  He had just completed several Breeding Bird Surveys and had had his ears tuned into bird calls for several weeks.

“Boy, that call is something I can’t place.  It definitely sounds more bird like than it does mammal or bug,” Tom said shaking his head.  ” I just can’t place it.”

It was time to investigate.  I stood inside the back door and scanned the trees and bushes before opening the door.  The only thing is sight was a Canyon Towhee.  We were both familiar with all of the calls and songs of the towhee, after all they are with us year round.

The call repeated itself.  It sounded close, but we couldn’t see anything.  It was time to open the door and take our chances that the bird would simply disappear.  I crept down the steps with binoculars ready.  Tom stayed on the porch to  get a wider view of anything that might fly.  I couldn’t see anything that would make that call.  The only thing around were some Black-throated Sparrows and the towhees.

“Hey, Nancy, I have it identified.  I think you are looking to far away from the house.”  Tom was smiling with a knowing look on his face.  He pointed straight down off the porch. 

Sure enough he had the culprit with the weird call found and identified.  See if you can identify it.

Can you identify this bird?

It was a fledgling Canyon Towhee.

Now you may ask what we did to help this little guy.  Well, we followed our own advice that is in our hints and tips page.

Everything turned out right.  The parent birds called and lead the little guy to the safety of a Mormon Tea Bush.  Tom’s team even won the soccer game.

I know this is supposed to be a blog about bird watching and bird feeders, but sometimes the beauty of the desert just has to be shown to the people who do not live in this type of region.

If you follow my blogs and my twitters you know that about two weeks ago we had a solid week of rain.  I was dismayed that it was interfering with my bird watching during the migration, but rain on the desert is always welcomed.  Scroll down to see what the rain has brought us.  These pictures were taken after we had completed our breeding bird surveys.  Tom will tell you more about the surveys when he blogs later this week. 

One last note, let me apologize to Ed Bustya, a world class photographer :^).  He is a good friend who will cringe and try to explain about composition, lighting, ect.  Hey Ed, I had been up since 1:30 AM and only had a $100 camera with me (how’s that for an excuse?)

Summer might be considered the most “prosperous” time of year for birds.  Most raise their families during this time of year because of the abundance of insects and berries to feed the young and themselves and the leafy shelter of trees, shrubs and vines is much more luxuriant during the summer than any other time of year providing cover for birds and nests.

For some birds, however, this may still be a critical time of year.  While nature and man may provide luxuriant growth in many areas, some birds must still travel afar to obtain water and food to feed themselves and their young.  The birds are exposed to added dangers during these forays.  This is where we as birders can come in and make a difference for the birds and add a great deal of enjoyment to our own lives by attracting a greater number of birds and bird species to our yards. 

By providing fleshy fruits for feeding babies and water we can eliminate or lessen these dangers.  Many nesting birds require fleshy berries for food during their early development.  We can help by providing or planting cherries, mulberries, serviceberries, blueberries, elderberries, raspberries, pyracantha, blackberries, wild plums, chokecherries or other fleshy fruit producing plants in our yards. 

In summer, birds look for thick plantings to provide shelter and nesting areas.  They naturally look for thick evergreens, yews or barberry hedges, vine thickets, hawthorns and trees providing hollow cavities for nesting.  We can help by putting up bird nest boxes for the species that will utilize them.  These plantings also attract many insects which the birds eat themselves or feed to their young.

Fresh water is even more important during the summer than any other time of year, especially in hot dry weather.  It is more important during this time of year to keep fresh water in the bird baths than to operate feeding stations during the summer.  Always remember that the sound of moving water will attract more birds to your yard during this time of year than non moving water.  This can be accomplished by providing your bird bath with a dripper or mister or by providing moving water with a backyard waterfall kit.

Summer is a “prosperous time of year for the birds, but, this does not mean that we cannot still help them out and provide enjoyable, educational and relaxing entertainment for ourselves.  Summer can be fun in the backyard.

We have been going to the Bisbee Farmer’s Market not only to sell bird feeders, but to purchase great produce and pastured meat for several years now. Our first trip for the year was last Saturday.

We were welcomed back by the organizers and some old customers, however we had one customer who had been looking for us. It seems he was unhappy with the Best 1 Hummingbird Feeder we had sold him last fall, and was not shy about telling us how unhappy he was and how hard it was to maintain.

I asked him if he had been getting humming birds into his feeders. He replied he has had quite a few hummers in, but had to stop using the Best 1 we had sold him.

I asked him if the hummingbird feeder leaked or was defective in any way. He said he did not like the design.

I told him that it was my favorite hummingbird feeder because we get 40 MPH winds and the feeder did not swing and spill sugar water all over my porch. He agreed that it had not tipped to the point of spilling.

I explained that I sometimes recommend a funnel to fill the bottles, especially if you use a container with a wide mouth to mix your sugar water in. He said filling was not the problem.

I was about to give up when I finally got him to start talking about the feeder and what had him so upset. He then confessed that he had went out of town unexpectedly and had not told his neighbor that takes care of his house when he is away about the new hummingbird feeder. When he came home it was full of black mold and the brush he had bought at the local discount store simply did not get the neck of the bottle clean. It was impossible to clean the bottle. And he knew dirty feeders are not good for hummingbirds.

I asked him if he had tried a Swab to clean the bottle. While asking I handed him one of the Swabs. He looked at it and said he was sure that the swab would not get through the neck of the bottle. The Swab was simply to big.

I asked him to wait right here and I would be back in just a minute with a solution to his problem. I dumped out my soda and filled the cup with water from the bathroom. I then explained how important it is to get the swab completely saturated by squishing it several times under water.

Squeeze the Swab several times to make sure it is saturated.

I then showed him that the swab does indeed fit through the neck of the bottle.

The Swab will fit through the neck of the Best 1 Hummingbird Feeder.

I showed him how it will open up once through it will clean the spots that the other brush missed.

The Swab is cleaning the Hard-To-Reach spot.

He bought the Swab that I had demonstrated with and said he would get back to me next time we go the the Bisbee Farmer’s Market. He walked away with a solution to his problem and a promise from me to make it right. After all who wants to explain to hummingbirds that they will not get their sweet treat from a Best 1 Hummingbird Feeder?