Howdy from Iowa (1 Viewer)

[Finzzup]

Hi all! I just found this site a few days ago and have really enjoyed reading through everything! I'm very new to birding -- I've hung up a finch feeder each spring for years and this year I have added some more permanent feeders hoping to attract some more birds. So far, I am extremely successful at attracting Blue Jays! :king: One of these days I need to figure out how to 'move' them to another area of the yard and continue feeding them but also get some other birds to my feeders.

This has been an exciting week for me -- I've seen the Bald Eagle that lives near our property twice this week!! Have only seen a Bald Eagle once before about ten years ago. I've also had 3 bird visitors (other than Blue Jays) stop by but they haven't stayed around long. A House Finch, a Common Redpoll, and something grey with a red tummy and black and white striped head that 'walks' down the tree trunk upside down! Haven't looked him up yet...

Just wanted to say howdy and thanks for the great site!

 

[Marysan]

Howdy to you, too, Finnzzup, and welcome to BirdForum. There are a lot of interesting folks here and many great photos. I wish for you that you get as much enjoyment from this site that I do.

 

[bcurrie]

Welcome Finnzzup! I'm glad we have someone here representing the central USA. I will be interested to know which bird you are talking about when you ID it.

 

[Gaye Horn]

Hi ya Iowa.. the bird walking up and down your tree is a woodpecker.. possibly a hairy.....they are the ones you will find doing that sort of thing...
Eagles are amazing and you are fortunate to have one on your property. Good Luck..
now about attracting birds...
if you move your jays to an area away from where small song birds are you will have more luck with more species...
Jays LOVE peanuts in the shell so make a platform with a lip around and put it up and away from the area where your wee birds are.. you will find that works...
Jays love suet too and berries.. they are real piggies and will eventually figure you out and train you so well that you will know when they should be there.. in fact you can whistle them down to your yard feeders... have fun
Welcome to a really great bird forum...

 

[bcurrie]

Gaye, but Hairy's don't have red on their tummies. I thought of a woodpecker when I read that as well, but could not find one matching that description.

 

[IanF]

Hi Finzzup,

Welcome to Birdforum :t:

It's great to have you on board. I hope that you enjoy the site and I look forward to readig your postings.

See you around.

 

[Gaye Horn]

Brian I missed the tummy part but it still sounds like a woodpecker and maybe a red breasted sapsucker...they have a bit of red in that general vacinity...but then again that is not the normal place one might see this bird... now we are stumped with what on earth it is.. let us hope that a photo is a possibility,UNLESS it is a nuthatch!!!
I do believe I am onto something here.. the area is right and a Red- breasted Nuthatch does that walking down a tree thing.. ya think?

 

[peter hayes]

Hi Finzzup

Lovely to have you with us. It sounds like I am at the same stage as you with birding - near the beginning! I only took up birdwatching a short time ago, and like you, each new bird is a marvellous thing.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

 

[Finzzup]

Thank you all for the nice welcomes! We are having an unusually warm winter day -- and combined with the lack of wind, it's just gorgeous outside. I've been hoping to see some more birds today, but they must all be somewhere else enjoying the day.

I haven't seen the little grey bird again... darn. I also haven't seen the Redpoll. But after looking through some pictures, I think the little grey one definitely has to be a red-breasted Nuthatch. The black and white striped head was identical!

About 6 weeks ago, I had one Woodpecker. I couldn't tell if it was a Downy or a Hairy Woodpecker, but I thought he had returned this morning to peck on the siding of our house! We have a cedar-sided house with brick on the lower half. But after watching for awhile, I kept seeing a Blue Jay fly up there and then peck at something. Hope he doesn't keep it up!

 

[Finzzup]

Jays LOVE peanuts in the shell so make a platform with a lip around and put it up and away from the area where your wee birds are.. you will find that works...

I've been throwing the peanuts in the shell on the ground below my feeders for a few months now, so today, I put them on the other side of the house in a ground platform feeder. Hopefully, they will begin to stay away from the hanging feeders (although I do have some suet there...) and more birds will want to come around.

One of the things the guy at the store told me to put out were "peanut rejects" which are basically broken up peanuts. He said the Blue Jays will empty that feeder in no time -- but they haven't even touched it! I also have black oil sunflower seeds, thistle seed and shelled sunflower seeds. They've been ignoring all of it and just go for the peanuts in the shell.

I live in the country on 5 acres with tons of trees, many of them evergreens. On all four sides of us, it's flat farm land and I'm wondering if the birds are getting a lot of food from what was left on the ground after the farmers harvested corn and soybeans? My friends that live in town and by the lake are swamped with birds -- and I have so few! Maybe when it snows (not that I'm hoping for snow!) I will see some more birds? Also, I used to have TONS of Northern Flickers all year round and they've disappeared... I think the Jays have chased everybody away!

 

[cjay]

Hooray!! Your tree walking bird is a Red Breasted Nuthatch.
Saw one in Norfolk UK at Holkham in October 1989. 2000 birders came to see it & it stayed until May 1990. It was elusive at times but good views were obtained when it did show.

It was the first time I saw birders cry when it did not show & fight when it did as someone jogged anothers tripod!


Keep the posts coming

CJ

 

[bcurrie]

Good call Gaye! When I saw your reply I thought you were on to something.

Finnzup, the Downy is A LOT smaller than the Hairy. The Downy is closer to finch size and the hairy is closer to (can't think of another bird off the top of my head that size in your neck of the woods, so..) the size of your out stretched hand (unless you have very short hands, of course).

 

[Finzzup]

Brian: Thanks for the clarification! It would've been a Hairy Woodpecker as he was much larger than a Finch!

My feeders are right next to a dead tree in our yard and I've been reading about how many birds prefer these dead trees -- guess I'm going to have to talk my husband into leaving the tree there as he was going to pull it out this spring!

 

[monkeyman]

Welcome to the Forum, Finzzup. Sounds like you live in an idyllic location!

I must admit that I first thought of some kind of nuthatch from the "jizz" you described, but I'm afraid that I'm not well up on your native American birdlife! Will you be able to post any photos?

B

Al

 

[Finzzup]

I sure hope to get some photos but unless I get a better camera with a zoom lens, I doubt if they will turn out okay. I tried taking a few with my digital that zooms but the distance is so far and I have nothing to set the camera on and I'm also shooting through a window.

What I'm hoping to do is start sitting outside at the times the birds appear (once I establish this!) with camera in hand. My dad had a knack of being around birds without upsetting them, so hopefully I have inherited some of it! haha (He would actually sit in a chair outside holding the Hummingbird feeder just inches away from him and all the Hummingbirds came right up to it like he was a tree or something!)

I'm so excited over my Nuthatch and Redpoll -- I've got my fingers crossed that they will return soon!

 

[bcurrie]

I actually hauled in a dead tree just for this purpose! My family thought I was crazy, but they have come to live with that fact!

 

[Chicaddd]

Finzzup

I was going to say the Red Breasted Nuthatch but Brian beat me to it.

 

[Finzzup]

It would've been a Hairy Woodpecker as he was much larger than a Finch!

I am retracting my statement here. I have a DOWNY Woodpecker!

And for the last few weeks, he is the ONLY bird I have seen in my yard... I can't believe I'm actually hoping for snow soon... 3

 

[Gaye Horn]

Congratulations on your downy Carol!!!Let it snow let it snow let it snow!!!