Showing posts with label for the birds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label for the birds. Show all posts

For the Birds: Who's that Knocking on My Chimney Cap?

Monday, March 29, 2021

Male Red-shafted Northern Flicker
on wooden drumming surface.
Photo by Craig Kerns
By Christine Southwick

Have you been sitting in your house when all-of-a-sudden something starts loudly drumming on your chimney cap? Startling, but not damaging-it just sounds like it.

Male Flickers are starting to drum on telephone poles, and any other sonorous surface, the louder the better. 

Telephone poles, tree trunks, and most branches don’t reverberate too well, so the males go for metal surfaces.

Females judge the fitness of a potential mate by how loud he can drum.

The good news is that males will stop using metal surfaces and return to wood and vocalizations, once a mate is acquired.

Flickers, the most common woodpecker in Washington, are important to the health of our wooded areas, and are considered a Keystone or Indicator Species.

Female Red-shafted Northern Flicker.
Photo by Craig Kerns
Their many nest-holes (usually abandoned after nesting) are used by small owls, wood ducks, bluebirds, swallows, chickadees, wrens, and small mammals like Douglas Squirrels.

Flickers create nest holes in dying trees, old telephone poles, fence posts and sometimes house siding (close-by nest boxes will help with the last issue).

It usually takes up to fourteen days for the pair to excavate the 8-16-inch-deep hole for the 5-8 eggs.

Flickers are unusual in the woodpecker family — they are often found on the ground eating their favorite foods - ants and beetles. 

Even so, you will still see them on tree trunks and limbs hunting for bugs, plus they nest and sleep in larger trees.

Intergrade male Northern Flicker.
Photo copyright Lyn Topinka
(both red-shafted and yellow feathers;
malar stripe is both red and black --
really extreme feathers
The flickers that are in our area are usually Red-Shafted Flickers, with salmon-red underside wing and tail feathers. These males have a red malar stripe.

Flickers migrate a little southerly in the winter, and back to the northern part of their range in the spring. During the winter months yellow-shafted flickers will sometimes be seen here.

We know that the ranges of these two subspecies overlap since we sometimes see Intergrade flickers.

Intergrade flickers have a mixture of some red-shafted flicker markings, and some markings of yellow-shafted flickers (male yellow-shafted have black malar stripe, and all yellow-shafted have a red spot on the back of their heads which red-shafted do not).

Sometimes these flickers have red-colored under-wing feathers, other times yellow-colored under-wing feathers.

If flickers drumming on your house and chimney vents are driving you crazy, don’t worry. The flickers will stop within a month.

More info on how to get these protected flickers to stop pounding on your siding. https://wdfw.wa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/00623/wdfw00623.pdf



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For the Birds: Rufous Hummingbirds love Flowering Red Currant

Sunday, March 21, 2021

First, the flowering red currant blooms
Photo by Christine Southwick

By Christine Southwick

Rufous Hummingbirds time their northward migrations to coincide with the flowering of Salmonberries and Red Flowering Currants.

Then the Rufous Hummingbirds appear
Photo by Craig Kerns

Be watching for Rufous Hummingbirds to be passing through your yards-- males first, with females a couple of weeks behind.



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For the Birds: Bewick's Wren setting up nesting

Monday, March 1, 2021

Photo by Christine Southwick

Just took this picture Saturday - the female was still putting leaves into the nest. The male makes three or four nest options, then the female selects which one she will use, and finishes it to her specifications.

--Christine Southwick


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For the Birds: Build a Nest Box -- or put one up

Saturday, February 27, 2021

Bewick's Wren with moth by Craig Kerns

By Christine Southwick

March is just around the corner which means that birds are pairing together, and some are starting to build their nests. Indeed, many female Anna’s hummingbirds are already on nests, and today I was treated to the joy of watching a pair of Bewick’s Wrens going in and out of a nest box, adding sticks and leaves to the nest.

Black-capped Chickadees have been checking out a nest box which hangs from a cherry tree branch. Last year Chestnut-backed Chickadees claimed this box in late March, so it is anybody’s guess who the new owners will be.

Red-breasted Nuthatch with bug by Craig Kerns

Cavity nesters like chickadees, Downy and Hairy woodpeckers, plus Northern Flickers will use nest boxes since suitable trees are often cut down.

Various owls will also use nest boxes, but these need to be over 12 feet up on a branched tree and require some heavy lifting.

Pacific Wrens, Song Sparrows, Spotted Towhees, and Dark-eyed Juncos are also pairing up. These birds build their nests on or near the ground and do not use nest boxes.

Bewick's Wren feeding young in nest box by Greg Pluth

If you want to buy a nest box, buy one with a side that can swing out so that you can clean it after the season without having to take it down if you have it in an ideal location. Make sure that the hole is 1 1/8” round if you are welcoming chickadees and/or wrens — too large will allow House Sparrows to take over the box.

Several stores sell nest boxes. If you want the widest selection for each of the several local nesting species, then the place to go is Wild Birds Unlimited in Lake Forest Park Town Center. They also sell kits to build.

If you are looking for a home-centered math and hands-on project during the pandemic, then you could build your own.

Cedar boards 51/2” wide are perfect for building nest boxes in this area. Pine will also work but a box made out of soft pine will only last a year or two. 

Do not paint nor stain the wood. Rougher boards are better, especially on the inside of the box so that the nestlings can climb out when they are ready. Older, seasoned wood is best, but new wood will work if you hang the boxes soon, so that they have time to season for a while.

Basic Songbird nest box plans

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has links to how to build bird boxes (commonly called bird houses).


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For the Birds: Trees Are the View—Just Ask a Bird

Monday, February 8, 2021

Anna's Hummingbird nest. Photo by Dan Harville

By Christine Southwick

On the wing, looking down, treetops and branches offer respite, safety, and food.

Our resident birds, plus migrating birds, use trees for so many things: resting and safe sleeping; shelter from rain, wind, and cold temperatures; food - fruits, nuts, bugs and caterpillars; nesting - either on branches or in trunk cavities; and prime territorial perches (both for singing to attract and keep mates, and for sighting territorial invaders).

Red-breasted Sapsucker making sap holes Photo by Christine Southwick

Which trees are best--Evergreens or deciduous?


Depends on the species of bird — Bald Eagles, Merlins, Band-tailed Pigeons, owls, hawks, and crows need tall trees, preferably conifers. 

Many smaller birds also prefer evergreen pines, cedars, spruces and firs: chickadees, nuthatches, Pileated, Downy, and Hairy Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker, and Red-breasted Sapsucker, even our Anna’s Hummingbird will use the sap holes in the trunks of large evergreens made by sapsuckers for much needed winter-time sugar energy.

It’s a delight to watch Bushtits and Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees flitting from one hemlock or cedar branch to the next branch, hanging upside down gleaning tiny insects unseen by human eyes.

Red-breasted Nuthatch on Trunk (with grub) Photo by Elaine Chuang

Deciduous trees are mostly smaller and have seasonal color.


Fruiting trees supply extra energy and have the additional advantage of colorful blossoms which nourish bees and other pollinators. 

Finches, American Robins and warblers like Yellow-rumped Warblers prefer native deciduous trees. The birds recognize and eat beneficial insects and help keep your trees healthy. The branches provide anchors and cover for nests and help restrict access to those necessary bird structures.

Even “ground birds” like Song Sparrows, Golden-crowned and White-crowned Sparrows, Spotted Towhees and Oregon Juncos use trees to their advantage.

Bewick's Wren fledgling. Photo by Elaine Chuang

Evergreen trees provide year-round shelter and slow down winter stormwater runoff, much needed in this region, plus they bestow greenness to our gray winters. There is a reason why Washington is officially the Evergreen State.

Did you know that 72% of Shoreline’s tree canopy is privately owned in yours and your neighbors yards? 

Unless a specific tree is in danger of falling, please keep your trees, or even plant more. (Leaves create a protective barrier in the winter and enrich your garden soil.) You can take pride in keeping your share of Shoreline’s canopy. You really are helping our city breath better.

Want to plant an evergreen tree? https://www.seattle.gov/trees/planting-and-care/tree-selection

If you want to figure out the value of a specific tree here is the link to the tree value calculator used by City of Edmonds http://www.treebenefits.com/calculator/



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For the Birds: The Irruption of 20-21

Saturday, January 9, 2021

Small, trusting, hungry little bundles of fluff - keep your feeders full for them
Photo by Craig Kerns

By Christine Southwick

Have you had flocks of small birds noisily sitting in your trees, swarming on your bird feeders, and seeming to erupt all over your yard? You really are a lucky one.

Beginning in October this area has seen vast numbers of Pine Siskins, the like not seen for over a decade. Certainly, this is one of the biggest irruptions of these finches ever recorded throughout the United States, even into Georgia and Alabama.

Hungry Pine Siskins have fled Canada in search of food
Photo by Craig Kerns

Bird feeders throughout our country are being emptied by hungry, stressed Pine Siskins who have left their Canadian boreal forest ranges, looking for food due to a meager cone crop there.

An occurrence of a sparse number of cones has always been somewhat cyclic, but now in addition many of the Canadian old-growth forests are being timbered, reducing even more the trees capable of supplying the normally abundant supply of cone seeds.

Water needs to be kept liquid during cold temperatures
Photo by Craig Kerns

Why is this called irruptive behavior and not migration? This type of flock movement is not a regular, annual movement along established flight routes, but an irregular movement, often years apart, and more often east-westward versus predominantly north and south.
  
These little brown striped birds with yellow feathers on their wings have sharp narrow bills which are suited for eating cone seeds, and they love sunflower chips in backyard feeders. They also like nyjer (thistle) seeds, but in our wet winters I don’t put nyjer seeds in my feeders due to rapid spoilage.

Salmonella seems to affect Pine Siskins more than other birds -- but does it really? 
These finches congregate in number, so a tired and starving Pine Siskin may die and its tiny body found below or near a feeder. 
Keep your feeders, suet, and bird baths clean, but don’t take everything down. Wintering birds still need healthy food.

Pine Siskins don’t see many people in their boreal forest habitats, so they are not afraid of individuals, and if you move slowly you will probably be able to get very close to these birds. 

I have even been able to get individuals to climb onto my finger.

Small, trusting, hungry little bundles of fluff — what’s not to love?

Yes, right now those 20-50 finches are eating all the food in your feeders, trying to get nourishment, but after this coming spring, you might not see Pine Siskins again for several years. 

Enjoy them while they are here.



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For the Birds: My 2021 Winner - Oregon Junco

Wednesday, January 6, 2021

Male Oregon Junco. Photo by Craig Kerns

By Christine Southwick
 
The first birds I saw New Year’s Day was a group of Oregon Juncos.

There are actually several subspecies of the Dark-eyed Junco in the northwest, but most people in this area only see the Oregon Junco, and occasionally in the wintertime a migrating Slate-colored Junco.

Female Oregon Junco (note the gray head)
Photo by Craig Kerns
Indeed, some people only have juncos in their yards starting in September when most juncos fly down from higher altitudes to savor our milder winter climate and more abundant foods.

These same juncos leave to go back to higher grounds in late April-May.

Juncos belong to the Sparrow Family, which means that they are ground nesters, with the female selecting and building her nest on or near the ground, hiding it behind a fern, tree root, or any other safe hiding place, including hanging potted plants.

The female broods 3-5 eggs for 10-13 days, and the young leave about 10 -12 days later.  This is the danger time for all ground nesters, and for safety the young often will scrabble out of the nest before they can fly.

Male feeding his fledgling. If you see an adult feeding a fledgling,
 then your yard is doing a good job. Photo by Christine Southwick.
Both parents feed their young for a couple more weeks. 

A seasonally monogamous pair usually have a couple of broods each year with the male feeding the first set of youngsters while the female is on the second set of eggs.

Dark-eyed Juncos flick their white outer tail feathers when eating, flitting, flying, and when the males are courting females. 

In the summer, the males are very assertive, and you may see males chasing others off. 

These flashes of white tail feathers are a diagnostic clue to identify this ground-hopping bird from other sparrow species.

The Slate-colored junco is a rare winter visitor
Stock photo
Some local neighbors with sheltering native plants and safe nesting sites have Oregon Juncos in their yards all year long.

These juncos, especially if there are juvenile birds being fed, are proof that yards with year-round water, native plants, space for safely raising young (which includes no pesticides), makes a difference for wild birds.

Make this year the year you make your yard one of these havens. Plant it and they will come.



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For the Birds: What’s Your First Bird of 2021?

Sunday, December 27, 2020

Anna's Hummingbird by Craig Kerns
By Christine Southwick

Many birders pay attention to the first bird they see (or hear if the birder knows the call) on New Year’s Day.

Why do they do this? (For all you new birders)

Birders like to challenge themselves to learn more about birds they see. Many New Year’s Day birds are resident birds and are often overlooked while looking for migrants.

So, say the first bird you see New Year’s Day is a Dark-eyed Junco or a Black-capped Chickadee, a wintering Fox Sparrow, or maybe a vagrant Red Crossbill, Pine Siskin, or even a Snowy Owl.

Bewick's Wren with grub by Craig Kerns
What does that mean?


This can be your birding inspiration for 2021! How? Look up the bird you sighted.

Does it live here year- round? If not, where does it usually stay? Does it winter here, then move further north to breed? 

Is that its regular migration, or is it one of those species which follows crops, and is considered to have an irruptive pattern? Or maybe it is a long-distance migrator that is off course!

How many eggs does “your” bird usually lay? Does it stay with the same partner each season (seasonally monogamous) like juncos, long-term partners like Black-capped Chickadees and many raptors, or dalliers like many Song Sparrows. 

Wintering Fox Sparrow by Christine Southwick
Do both parents feed their nestlings and fledglings, or is the nest-building and all the offspring raising left to the female, like it is for Anna’s Hummingbird?

Where does it build its nest? Merlins and Band-tailed Pigeons need tall evergreen trees. Juncos, song-sparrows, towhees all nest on the ground, so they need native shrubs, hiding places, and spaces free from dogs and cats. 

Your yard can make a major difference.

What does your 2021 bird eat?

The majority of birds, like Black-capped Chickadees, Bewick's Wrens, Bushtits, and all warblers eat and feed their nestlings bugs and caterpillars, so don’t use pesticides. 

Path with leaves welcomes wintering Fox Sparrows
and Varied Thrushes, plus nourishes the soil and
prevents weeds. Photo by Christine Southwick
Most birds eat seeds; some like American Goldfinches just eat grains and seeds and prefer open areas where these foods are found. 

Anna’s Hummingbirds need nectar in the wintertime - if you have native flowers in your yard, summertime hummingbird feeders are fun to watch, but not really necessary. 

A really good book explaining the whys and how-tos to make your yard a nature conservation site is Nature’s Best Hope (A new approach to conservation that starts in your yard) by Douglas W. Tallamy.

Learn all about “your 2021 bird” and enjoy watching it grace your yard.



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For the Birds: Hummingbirds — Our Local Aerial Displayers

Monday, November 2, 2020

Pugnacious male Anna's guarding all visible feeders

By Christine Southwick
Photos by Craig Kerns

Who hasn’t been thrilled by watching hummingbirds hover over bright flowers, dart over our heads, or even fly backwards?

Our resident Anna’s Hummingbirds and our seasonal Rufous Hummingbirds come to the feeders we put out and delight us with their brilliant colors and territorial displays.

This female Anna's is cold -- that's why she is fluffed up

Most people put these feeders where they can watch the hummers from a window. Many of us end up putting up a couple of feeders, spaced far enough apart that the dominant male has to fly back and forth to chase away other hummingbirds, thus enabling other hummers to partake of the provided sugar water.

Light keeping sugar water liquid (and Anna's warm too)

Feeders are easy to maintain. 

Nectar is ¼ cup of sugar (cane not beet) to one cup of water. During the summer feeders should be cleaned every 2-4 days, in cool weather every 4-7 days. Mold is hazardous to hummers. I don’t use red food coloring because that may be hazardous to hummingbirds too. I also have weather guards over my feeders — it keeps rain, and the occasional snow off the feeders and the hummers.

Anna’s eat more bugs than any other North American hummingbird (according to a study by the San Diego Zoo).

That is one of the reasons why these flying jewels have been able to become residents (and another reason not to use pesticides). Here in Western Washington we have planted many flowering plants and welcomed these aerial acrobats into our yards.

Do you know that it is most important to maintain your hummingbird feeders in the wintertime? 

Snow on a winter feeder

From about October though early May (depending on how cold the weather is), Anna’s supplement their daily nutrition with neighborhood feeders. The flowers are mostly gone, and a cold snap will kill most of the small bugs for a while. 

What are they to do? Why, find a local hummingbird feeder, and hope that it is being kept filled, clean, and liquid. Most Anna’s have a neighborhood route that they follow, so they often show up at each feeder at about the same time.

When it freezes, Anna’s will feed into dark on cold evenings before shutting down into tupor during the night to preserve energy, and they start going to feeders looking for much-needed instant energy just before daylight. That is why it is so important to keep the feeders liquid, either with a feeder heater, a light, or a taped-on handwarmer.

The Anna’s here will thank you, so enjoy!



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For the Birds: Suet Saves Birds

Thursday, October 22, 2020

 

Red-breasted Nuthatch with a beakful of suet
Photo by Craig Kerns


By Christine Southwick
Townsend's Warbler in heart-shaped suet holder
Photo by Craig Kerns



Suet helps birds stay healthy and warm during our damp and often cold fall and winter months by supplying much needed healthy calories to sustain their body heat and needed energy levels.

Birds love suet and almost all of our local birds will eat it all year long. 

Hang one of the suet feeders where you can watch our resident Black-capped and Chestnut-backed chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Bewick’s Wrens, Bushtits, and Flickers, Downy, Hairy, and Pileated woodpeckers partake of this delicious and nutritious feast. 

Migrating and summer birds, like Black-headed Grosbeaks and Yellow-rumped Warblers will also peck away at these delectable treats.

Male Pileated Woodpecker
on tail-prop suet holder
Photo by Craig Kerns


Most suet comes in squares called cakes, but some are shaped into cylinders which allows different types of feeders. 

Feeders can really be your choice; simple metal cages, wooden or recycled-material prop-tail containers, or my favorite, metal-roofed containers. 

Roofs over suet cakes and cylinders prevent our wet climate from soaking the suet and provide some cover for the birds while they are eating, plus the added bonus of restricting unwanted visitors like starlings.

Suet comes in many flavors, and some birds seem to develop a preference. 

It really doesn’t matter which variety you feed them, as long as the suet has high fat and protein, and during breeding and molting season, calcium. 

Cheap suet often has filler seed that many birds don’t like — red millet is one most birds in this area won’t eat. 

Suet is easy to buy. It can be found in grocery stores, hardware stores, and specialty stores like Wild Birds Unlimited in Lake Forest Park.

Black-headed Grosbeak eating in cylinder
Photo by Craig Kerns


Squirrels like suet too, so suet placement can be important to restrict their access, or you could use suet that has red pepper in it. 

Birds will gladly eat red pepper seeds but squirrels and mammals in general avoid it.

During a sudden cold snap, suet will make the difference between some birds surviving or not, so think about hanging more than one suet feeder.

Then grab your favorite hot beverage, sit by the window and watch the fun as the birds grab beaks full of delicious suet that you have provided for them.



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For the Birds: Another Southern species moving to Washington?

Sunday, October 11, 2020

Scrub jay in Innis Arden
Photo by Tanis Coralee Leonhardi

By Christine Southwick

In the mid 1970’s Anna’s Hummingbirds started staying through our mild winters and breeding here in Washington. 

They are now year-round residents, thanks mainly to flowering plants and year-round hummingbird feeders.

Now some California Scrub-Jays are being seen where they haven’t been seen before. 

Are they going to move here too? It is postulated that these jays are able to move north due to global warming (which includes fleeing forest fires) plus the availability of actively-stocked bird feeders. 

California Scrub-Jay in Briercrest
Photo by Peggy Bartleson

There are three sub-species of Western Scrub-Jays. Plumage and behavior differ greatly between interior and coastal populations of these scrub-jays. 

Coastal populations are called the California Scrub-Jay sub-species and are relatively tame, distinctly different from the interior sub-species. 

Unlike our native Steller’s Jay, California Scrub-Jays have no crest, a white breast with a blue breast band, and the overall blue is much lighter than the deep blue-black of Steller’s Jays.

Western Scrub-Jays prefer oak woodlands but being part of the adaptable corvid family they have found our tree-friendly residential areas to be viable options.


Scrub-Jay getting lay of land
Photo by Tanis Coralee Leonhardi

Western Scrub-Jays are omnivorous and creative eaters. 

They will eat insects, spiders, berries and seeds, acorns and nuts, plus rodents, reptiles, frogs, and even baby birds. 

Like Steller’s Jays they will cache their food and retrieve it later. 

They gladly use bird feeders, especially those with whole peanuts.

Usually monogamous, California Scrub-Jays nest in shrubs and low trees. 

Both partners build the nest for the one brood of 3-6 eggs. Additionally, scrub-jays prefer to travel in pairs or small groups, although it is not unusual for a single bird to adventure out looking for suitable habitat. Recently there were sightings of California Scrub-Jays in Briercrest and Innis Arden.

California Scrub-Jay in Briercrest
Photo by Peggy Bartleson

Western Scrub-Jays don’t migrate, but in the fall some birds will search for new territory, which has enabled the species to spread northward in Washington. 

For years they were south of Puget Sound, but recently West Seattle has had some breeding pairs. 

A few Scrub-Jays have been reported as far north as Skagit County.

It is expected that they will continue their northward progress.

The question is will the Steller’s Jay tolerate them or chase them off? 

I wonder at the outcome. What we do know is that neither side will acquiesce quietly.



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For the birds: Missing birds—usually a temporary situation

Saturday, September 19, 2020

Yellow Warbler, Photo by Tony Varela


By Christine Southwick

Several people have asked “Where have their birds gone?”

Evening Grosbeak,
Photo by Christine Southwick
The last week of Aug thru the first couple of weeks of September adult birds that had successful broods are finally replacing their feathers -- a process called molting.

The energy to replace each-and-every feather each year is high; too high to take place while a bird is actively feeding four to six babies.

Right now many resident adults are currently missing important flight feathers.

Purple Finch, male by Christine Southwick

Therefore, many of these birds will stay under cover in bushes and trees to save energy and keep safe. 

These adults are mainly eating bugs and fruits in place.

So they are not being seen at most feeders.

This includes our local Anna’s Hummingbird. The juveniles, this year's new birds, will come to the feeders, but there will still be fewer birds at your feeders.

Additionally, some of the birds that are at your feeders are migrants -- like Evening Grosbeaks and Purple Finches. Some of them have already left, and most will soon.

Black headed Grosbeak
Photo by Christine Southwick

Consistently keeping your feeders stocked with good quality food will give long-distance migrants like Black-headed Grosbeaks going to Mexico and warblers, like Yellow Warblers going as far as South America a good start by supplying the protein-loading needed to survive their long-distance migration. 

Especially this year with all the forest fires, many rest stops and roosts may have been eliminated, making a strong start imperative.

So yes, there are less birds at your feeders right now, but the resident adults will be back in another week or two.

Additionally, the smoke made even more birds to hunker down, and our rain will help them return.

Keep food in your feeders, your resident adult birds will return.

[For the visually impaired: the Yellow Warbler at the top is a fat little yellow bird, firmly attached to a small branch. His head is thrown back and his beak is wide open. He is in full song. The Evening Grosbeak and the Black-headed Grosbeak are very similar. They have sturdy looking bodies with orange throat and chest shading to vanilla on their lower body. Seen from the front, the Black-Headed Grosbeak has a mostly black head with shades of orange and white. His wings and tail are black with splotches of white. The beak is light colored, very thick and bends down. The Evening Grosbeak has more distinct markings which we can see in profile. His long feathers are black and the feathers in the middle of his back are brilliant white. The Purple Finch is a mottled red-purple color. He has the same strong beak.]



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For the Birds: Bird Food – or Not

Friday, July 3, 2020

American Goldfinches on black-oil sunflower seeds
Photo by Christine Southwick
By Christine Southwick

People sometimes ask me what foods to feed birds. I also tell them what not to offer.

Do you have shrubs and trees for your birds to rest, feed, and evade predators? Is your yard mostly open, mixed shading, or heavily shaded with branches? This will determine the answer to the next question.

Which birds do you have, and which birds do you hope to invite?

The universal food for the most species of local birds is black oil sunflower seeds, unshelled or shelled.

Seed mixes draw in other species and will add extra nutrients that can help spring nesting birds and winter-time survival. They often need different feeders, but variety provides more places to feed.

Hairy Woodpecker female juvenile
(aged by red on top of head)
Photo by Craig Kerns

I always provide suet, year-round to help the birds with high protein food. Suet will bring in woodpeckers, plus you will be able to watch chickadees and Red-breasted Nuthatches cling to the suet holders while chomping away. 

In the summer one can buy suet that is no-melt.

There is also suet that has hot pepper that squirrels avoid.

Many people want American Goldfinches to come to their yards, and they go buy niger (thistle) seed, and then are disappointed when the goldfinches never come.

If your yard has heavy shade you probably won’t get goldfinches, no matter what food you offer.

American Goldfinches prefer open fields and shrubs but will feed from feeders that are out in the open, once they find it.

 Niger seed often spoils here in the Puget Sound area, due to all the rain and damp mornings.

Cedar Waxwing on serviceberry tree
stock photo
Cedar Waxwings love Serviceberry trees, and Black-headed Grosbeaks like grape jelly and orange slices. If you put out apple slices, take out the seeds-they have cyanide.

If you want to feed the ducks feed them cracked corn, NOT bread.

Bread doesn’t provide any nutrients— it just makes ducks and birds come close to you.

Shoreline Parks (and other parks in this area) do not permit the feeding of waterfowl and other animals due to leftover food bringing in varmints - plus it is not healthy for wildlife.

House Finch on seed mix
Photo by Craig Kerns
Fruiting native shrubs and trees will bring in birds and help compensate for the major loss of suitable habitat for migrating and resident birds and these plantings help pollinators too.

Moving water will also bring in birds for much needed drinks and baths.





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For the Birds: Number 1 bird killer is habitat loss

Saturday, June 13, 2020

Wilson's Warblers are vanishing
Photo by Elaine Chuang

By Christine Southwick

Your gas tank light just turned on. You tried to fill up at a place you’ve used before, but the station was closed.

You know another place that’s miles away, but you should make it, barely. 

When you get there the gas station has been replaced by a strip mall.

Now what?

If you were an exhausted and hungry bird facing this scenario you would probably fall to the ground, unable to travel on.

If you were lucky you might find enough water, food, shelter, and predator-free space to recover and travel onto your breeding or wintering grounds. If not, you, and possibly your whole flock, would die, never to fly or sing again.

Loss of bird-friendly habitat is occurring throughout the US and Canada, and bird populations have declined approximately 3 billion birds in just the last fifty years. 

For example, half the Wilson’s Warblers have vanished, and a third of the Dark-eyed Juncos have been lost. Distances between resting and refueling stops have become so great that many birds traveling migration routes will die from lack of bird-friendly stopovers.

Pileated Woodpecker using dead tree
Photo by Doug Parrott


There are fewer big trees for birds to nest and perch in, and fewer fields for eating and raising their young. It is often hard for birds to find clean water, especially in the winter.

What can you do?

Keep or plant trees— especially trees with fruits and add evergreen trees for winter shelter. Make 20-foot snags from the bottom of a dangerous tree. Dead trees shelter many cavity nesters and secondary cavity users, and actually support more wildlife than many live trees.

MacGillivray's Warbler stopping in route for a quick drink and bath
Photo by Christine Southwick

If you must cover a ditch, offer water and shelter to replace what you took away.

Gardens should supply bugs to feed birds, salamanders, garter snakes, dragonflies. If you make your gardens too clean, they become sterile for wildlife. Native plants and mulched leaves will make your yard bird friendly.

Dark-eyed Junco
Photo by Christine Southwick 
Keep a small wild corner, with unmown grass and weeds.

Make a brush pile for shelter, hiding and escape routes for birds. Brush piles and brambles provide shelter during winter cold also.

When you change a landscape to suit your tastes, ask yourself how you can supply water, food, and shelter to our native birds. 

They will reward you with delightful song, fun ID activity, and a sense of pride that you are helping compensate for habitat lose.




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For the Birds: If You Find a Baby Bird

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Fledgling Song Sparrow Photo by Elaine Chuang
Most sparrows will leave their nest long before they can fly for safety sake.
If attacked the nestlings will scatter running, so safer than staying in a nest.

By Christine Southwick

Baby birds are starting to hatch and leave their nests. Sometimes fledglings are found on the ground and may appear to need help. 

Unless the bird is bleeding, or has an obviously broken wing or leg, it doesn’t need any help, and any interference is unnecessary and can cause undue stress and unforeseen consequences. 

Leave it alone and make sure to keep cats and dogs away from the youngster.

Robin nestling Photo by Elaine Chuang


Here is the official word from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

“If the bird is fully or partially feathered, chances are it doesn't need your help. Fledglings, also known as “branchers,” typically leave the nest and move about on the ground and on low branches for a few days before they can fly. Their parents are nearby and continue to care for the birds, answering their demanding calls with regular deliveries of food."
Golden-crowned Kinglet fledgling Photo by Craig Kerns
Note the bright gape (around mouth)

"Unless injured, a fledgling bird should be left where it is. You can help by keeping cats, dogs, and curious children away from the bird so the mother can continue to feed it. However, removing a native bird from its environment is illegal, and deprives it of the essential care it needs from its parents.”

Sometimes nature throws us a curveball. Three days ago I heard a loudly peeping duckling dodging under a car to avoid being pecked by five crows. I yelled them off, and then set about calming the duckling until I could capture it. There was no water nearby, no parents and no other ducklings. This was not the right environment for a duck — I wonder how it had wandered so far... 

Rescued duckling swimming toward other ducklings
Photo by Christine Southwick

Being so young, this duckling needed water and food right away. (Baby ducks, unlike birds, start eating on their own right after hatching, therefore getting it to a place with the right type food was important) So we took it to a large pond that we knew had other mallards with some ducklings about the same age.
 
As soon as I put it in the water, it started peeping loudly, and swimming to the other ducklings. By this action I knew it had imprinted on other ducks — wherever it had hatched. 

This week I saw a smaller duckling with a couple of others, and I like to think that was the duckling I saved. At least I gave that duckling a fighting chance.




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