Tom's Bird Feeders and Reptile Supplies

The spring bird migration is still slowly filtering through.  The Hooded Oriole visited us for the first time just before Easter.  His bright yellow/orange  head with the orange on the saucer oriole feeder would make anyone’s day brighter.

Today we had a Wilson’s Warbler into our bird pond.  His black cap was identifiable without binoculars.  Our pond is a recirculating 4 tier pond and he seemed to like the more shallow middle tiers.  He was splashed by a Northern Mockingbird in the top tier.  Our pond is one of our most popular areas with birds migrating to the north.  The pond allows us to see birds that do not come into our bird feeders.  The Wilson’s Warbler is just one example of what adding water to your yard will do to attract birds to your yard.

Over the past few days we have observed a number of bird species that we consider true signs of spring.  Several hummingbird species are coming in to our hummbingbird feeders now and we had our first Scott’s Oriole at our recycled oriole feeder and a Lawrence’s Goldfinch at our stainless steel thistle feeder.  We also saw our first Turkey Vulture (the true sign of spring in Portal).  An additional sign of spring comes when the reptiles come out to play.  Today we had several Ornate Tree Lizards sunning on the walls of our turtle enclosures. They were a joy to watch as they sunned for a while and then scurried around grabbing small insects which were landing on the walls. We should develop a Lizard Crossing sign to put up on the sidewalk between our house and our office as quite often, in the summer, the lizards come close to plowing into us as they pursue their food in our path. Our first Ornate Box Turtles were out and around in their enclosure and two Russian Tortoises were out exploring today. When the cold blooded creatures come out we know that spring is truly here and that the freezing weather is behind us.

While driving home yesterday I saw one lone Turkey Vulture soaring by Rodeo, N.M.  For those of us in southeastern Arizona that means that spring is upon us. The trees are starting to bud and the poppies are turning the hillsides golden.

We had a Broad-tailed Hummingbird into our saucer hummingbird feeder this morning and the Cactus Wren and the Curve-billed Thrasher are fighting over the telephone pole. Both feel they  have territorial rights to this pole.  We cleaned out the nesting platform, but the Cactus Wren has started moving nesting material into it already.

The spring bird migration has started, the flowers are blooming and it is a GREAT day for nature lovers!

Today when we went outside to fill our bird feeders,  a Great Blue Heron was sitting on top of our roof. This would not be an unusual species except I live in the middle of a desert with the nearest body of water several miles away.  All I can say is birds are where you find them.

This battle started with a Loggerhead Shrike perching on top of an agave stalk we had placed above our bird feeders. After a few days of his continuous presence, our morning ritual of filling our coffee cups and watching our bird feeders became rather boring.

We thought we had solved the problem by removing the agave stalk.  The shrike moved to our satellite dish.  From there he can now dominate all three bird feeding stations in our yard.

This morning we climbed onto the roof and attached several strips of surveyor’s fluorescent pink tape to the cable he perches on.  Hopefully this will discourage his continued presence.

I’m hopeful, but not ready to declare the war over!

We have been blaming the windy weather for keeping the number of birds down at our bird feeders. But today the wind was down, the sun was out and birds were still not coming into our bird feeders. In fact even the thrashers were hunkered down deep into the bushes instead of claiming a platform bird feeder.

We had recently had to take an agave stalk down because we had a Loggerhead Shrike use it as a perch. But with the stalk down we had not seen him lately.

This morning when we went to fill the bird feeders, we discovered that we had not discouraged the shrike, but only accomplished moving him to the top of our television satellite dish. Now he can see all three bird feeding stations at the same time.

We can’t take down the satellite dish. He does not fly away when we try to scare him. But, we do have some neighbors worried about our sanity.  It seems that yelling and waving your arms while staring at your dish is not normal.

This shrike thinks he has outsmarted us.  And I guess we may have lost the battle, but have not given up the war.

If you have ideas, PLEASE let us know.

I was at a show last weekend where I had a Grandmother lament that her grandchildren just weren’t interested in bird watching.  I have grandchildren and found them to be very involved in feeding the birds and are very excited when a bird came in for breakfast or maybe just a snack.

I have been thinking about why my grandkids are interested in bird watching and would like to offer the following suggestions to parents and grandparents.  These suggestions are for young children.  In another blog I will talk about older children.

First, you need to get them involved.  Pointing though a window and saying “Look at the pretty bird” just does not do it.  My grandson (2 1/2 years old) helps fill the bird feeders.  When we have finished filling the bird feeders and hear the birds singing, I tell him that it is their way of saying “thank you”.  If we have not filled the bird feeders, the singing is their way of saying “please”.  I don’t make an issue that he helps every day and I never interrupt a good game of stacking the blocks to do this.  I try to pick a time that he is looking for something to do.  And yes, some times the birds get fed more often than they need to, but who cares as long as the child is interested in birds right then?

We have bird feeders that are at his level.  All bird watchers have experienced “warbler neck”,  that stiff feeling that you get from looking up all day at tree top birds.  For a child a bird feeder at your level will give them “warbler neck”  We have several platform bird feeders that are at his height.  These are the bird feeders that he notices.  The platform bird feeders are outside a sliding glass door at our house, and outside a low picture window at Great Grandma’s house.  The movement of the birds catches his eye and when he knows that he filled that feeder, he is excited.  It means that we have finger prints on the glass, but really, is that something that we should worry about?

I need to remember that my grandson will not be excited about the first Green-tailed Towhee each fall, but is excited about the House Finches every time he sees them, after all red is his favorite color.  He has helped his little sisters stand up to look out the windows more than once and explained to them that “That’s my bird!”

I try to remember that if  he has spotted a particularly colorful bird, like Blue Jays in South Dakota or a Cardinal in Arizona I need to stop what I am doing for just a few seconds and share in his excitement.

I also need to remember that his attention span is still very limited and he will be off to his next project before I am ready to move on.

I think you get the idea by now.  Make bird watching fun.  Don’t make it a chore.  Get down on your knees and see their world.  You will learn that the world through their eyes is a very different place than the world though our eyes.  Enjoy their wonderment.  As every Grandma knows, childhood does not last long enough.

Today I will review another finch bird feeder.  Now, remember these bird feeders will only feed thistle bird food. They will not accommodate a mixed seed nor will they feed sunflower seeds.

These thistle bird feeders will attract all three species of goldfinches,  House Finches, Purple Finches, Pine Siskins, and I have had reports of juncos and titmice regularly visiting thistle feeders.

If you have been using a thistle sock and are tired of replacing it or have problems with squirrels, the acrylic thistle feeder might be the next step up for your backyard birding habitat.

The acrylic top will provide some protection from rain and the acrylic bottom does have drain holes so that rain may quickly drain away from the seed.  This feeder also has a center seed diverter so that Every seed can be consumed.  The screen is stainless steel and allows birds to cling to it.  There are no perches, but this will help with some problem birds such as the pigeons and morning doves. Now remember that finches are “cling and peck” feeders and do not need to have perches.

The top has a special lock pin so that it will not blow off in wind storms, but can be easily removed for filling.

To clean the acrylic finch feeder, we spray the screen with a mild bleach solution, use a stiff  brush to scrub it and then allow it to dry.  The bottom may be removed during the cleaning process, but it is held together with a nut on the bottom so you must use an appropriate tool.  For this reason, this feeder  is slightly more of a challenge to clean that some of the others that I will review.  However, at only $14.99 for a 1 quart feeder with a three year warranty this is one of our most popular thistle bird feeders.

A little while back I wrote a blog about the winter birds coming in to our bird feeders early this year. Well, the birds knew what they were doing. For the past two days we have had rain, sleet and snow! On Wednesday the snow actually accumulated on the ground. It only lasted a few hours, but snow is usually at our elevation only in December and January.

This storm brought a new yard bird into our platform bird feeder. It was the Dark-eyed Junco, the Oregon subspecies. It is common in Paradise, but the elevation and the habitat are typical for the Oregon Junco in Paradise, not down here on the edge of the desert.

We also had a Gila Woodpecker coming in to help its self to the sunflower seed bird feeder, one seed at a time. He would then fly up to an agave stock to crack the seed, then back down to the bird feeder.

The weatherman has promised a warm up, but this morning the Oregon Junco was back in. Who do you think predicts the weather more accurately, the weatherman or the junco?

“Which thistle bird feeder is right for me?” is a question I get quite often at the birding festivals.  First I have to ask if you are feeding thistle now.  If you are and are looking for a new thistle feeder I would like to know why.  Do you just need to replace an old thistle feeder that is in disrepair?  Is there a reason you don’t like your current thistle bird feeder?  Is it hard to fill? Is it hard to clean?

If you are not feeding thistle then let’s figure out what birds a new thistle bird feeder will bring into your yard.  We need to check distribution maps and compare your location to the maps.  You will get some birds into thistle anywhere in the country, and checking distribution and habitat will tell you what the most likely species are, such as Goldfinches, Siskins, Redpolls and House Finches.

If you are new to feeding thistle to the birds I like to suggest a thistle sock as a beginner bird feeder.  We have three different thistle socks.  Our basic thistle sock comes filled with thistle seed.  This will give you both the sock and a starting supply of seed.  This is for someone who is just not sure what will come in to the thistle sock.  These socks have a thinner weave to their material.

The other socks are woven from heavy material, and comes in two sizes.  The small thistle socks are approximately 4″ x 11″.  This sock will accommodate approximately 7-8 birds at a time.  The large thistle socks are woven from heavy material and are approximately 4″ x 22″.  This sock will accommodate approximately 12-15 birds at a time.  A draw string retainer protects from spillage of expensive nyjer seed on these thistle socks.

Any thistle sock is subject to damage from squirrels, so this should be taken in to account before choosing a thistle sock.

With any thistle sock, be sure to roll the sock between your hands after rain.  This will move the seed around and assure that the seed dries so there is not spoilage.

These thistle bird feeders provide an economical method for feeding small desirable birds that cling, and may be right for you.  In upcome blogs I will discuss our other thistle bird feeders pros and cons.  We will find the perfect thistle feeder for you!

We have had an Anna’s Hummingbird visiting our hummingbird feeder recently.  That flash of rose red while we sip from our coffee cup always gives us pause.  The color is so brilliant.  When I first started bird watching, I thought that my field guide had taken some creative liberties when they chose the color of ink, but I now know that my inexperience was showing  and that the field guide was accurate.

A facinating fact about this little gem of a bird is his display.  This little guy will not only display for a female hummingbird, but will show off for humans frequently. He will let you know that you are about to be treated to this display by hovering 6-12 feet in front of you.  He will then fly about 130 feet straight up.  He will then plummet in a near vertical dive. This display dive ends when the lets off a loud tweet about a 1 1/2 feet in front of you.  He will then circle back to his starting point.  Now this little hummingbird knows how beautiful he is as he will orient himself to the sun so that his throat and crown are reflected in the sun during the dive.

So, next time you think that the Anna’s Hummingbird you were watching disappeared by flying straight up, stay put, he just may be giving you a special view, and celebrate by wearing your Anna’s Hummingbird cap.

What is the winter weather going to bring us?

I looked out the window this past week to see a Pinion Jay at our stainless steel sunflower bird feeder.  I did a double take.  We have had them in our yard before, but usually in December and January, and then only when we have snow at our elevation which only happen a few times a year.  Although Tom was sure I knew what a Pinion Jay looked like after helping band them for years, his eyebrow still went up just a little.

“How unusual,” was his only comment.

Just a few days ago Tom hollered in from the family room “Hey, we have a Scrub Jay eating at the suet bird feeder!”

“How unusual,” was my only comment.  Although I have to tell you that I did get a good look at him and will confirm his finding.

This morning while we were sipping from our coffee mugs we had a Dark-eyed Junco stop for a bite to eat at the triple tube bird feeder.  We looked at each other and said at the same time “How unusual!”  We can laugh and tease each other and this sort of teasing always makes the day start off right.

It does make us wonder-what kind of weather will we be having if the birds are already scouting out bird feeders at our lower elevation?

Are you people from up north feeling sorry for us?

We started our morning in the typical fashion-coffee mugs in front of the sliding glass door in our family room. Our thistle bird feeder was attracting the Lesser Goldfinches. These finches usually stay for most of the year with us. They will leave us for a few weeks each summer during breeding season.

But this morning we had one American Goldfinch stop in for a bite to eat and a quick bath in the bird bath. This species is uncommon for our area. A few are seen in the area each year, but we have never had the flocks we were familiar with when we lived in South Dakota, and they never stay in the area for very long.

We knew our day was off to a great start, and to add to the day a small flock of Pine Siskins stopped by. These were a first for this fall. They visited our thistle sock, as the stainless steel thistle feeder was pretty much covered with birds. The American Goldfinch was much larger than the Lesser Goldfinches, so he was not shy about making sure he got a hearty breakfast.

It’s great to have more than one kind of bird feeder in your yard. Yesterday the platform bird feeder had all of the excitement and today the thistle bird feeders. What will tomorrow bring?

The House Finch is a fairly common bird throughout the country now, but, it has not always been that way.  In the early 1900s they were common only in the southwestern states.  At that time they were also commonly sold as cage birds because of their beautiful song.  When American birds became protected under federal law (the Migratory Bird Treaty Act) many pet shops and bird dealers in the eastern states, especially New York released all of their captive birds so they would not be caught with them and fined.  These birds rapidly became quite common where they were released and began spreading to the west and south.  The southwestern birds also began spreading to the north and east.  In the early 1970s I banded the first House Finch identified in the state of South Dakota.  This was like the Golden Nail that joined the railroads from the Atlantic to the Pacific.  The eastern and western populations of this bird had met in the middle and now they occupy all 48 states and Hawaii and are fairly common throughout the country.

This is truly a beautiful bird.  The male is dressed up with a bright red forehead, supercilium, breast and rump in addition to its pretty song.  The female is more sparrow like, brown in color with a light belly with brown streaks.  They are easy to attract with sunflower seed or thistle Nyjer seed.  These birds are cling and peck type feeders so perches on the sunflower feeders or thistle feeders are not necessary as they can just cling to the side of the feeder.

Water is also a good way to get House Finches to your yard.  This can be provided with a simple bird bath or something as elaborate as a backyard pond kit.  Moving water is always better for attracting birds and you can add this dimension to a simple birdbath through the use of a mister or dripper.

While these birds are beautiful and fun to watch in your yard, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing.  In many areas House Finches are as common as the English House Sparrow.  In my mother’s backyard in Wyoming the House Finches are overwhelming, occurring in large numbers and eating a lot of seed in the process.  We have a lot of them on our property here in Portal, Arizona also, but nowhere near the numbers that my mother plays host to. 

So, are the House Finches beauties or beasts?  You can decide and let us know how you feel by commenting on this entry.  As for Nancy and I (and my mother), we operate on the premice that birds coming into the feeders attract other birds to the feeders and, in general, we have found that to be true.  What do you think?

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…..