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Bwd (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter snowyowl
- Start date
amasara said:
I too miss the old Bird Buzz. I think this forum is very interesting, but small and familiar is nice. I personally have not been posting because I had to take every feeder down due to a black bear that visits. I am very depressed about this, but I'm trying to adjust.
snowyowl
Well-known member
Sorry about your feeders. The rest of us complain about skunks and racoons. I guess we just don't know when we are well off. I wonder what our European posters think of bears raiding feeders?Celeste said:
I was thjinking about writing to BWD and asking them why they dropped their involvement. In the last issue that I received they were still promoting Bird Buzz. At this point, I'm rather wishing that I hadn't just renewed my subscription for another three years. I used to enjoy the discussions that resulted from some of the articles.
There seems to be only four of us left-overs from Bird Buzz still posting. It really is too bad.
snowyowl said:
Dan,
I think writing to BWD is a good idea. I am planning to write a question in about my bear problem and I will also ask if they plan to start up again. The website looks dead to me, but I remember reading in one of the articles that there was to be some sort of follow up on the website. Anyway, I really enjoy the articles. Reading them along with putting out oranges daily and planning a new water feature, is my plan to cope with no feeders till end of Nov. I also plan to focus on bird houses and bird attracting flowers. I always enjoy reading your posts. I plan to post my cold Cape May week-end sightings........somewhere.
snowyowl
Well-known member
I read your Cape may report under a different thread. You really did well.Celeste said:
I'm planning major changes in my garden this year. I'm going to cut back (pun?) on my mowing and eliminate my vegetable and herb garden. There are only two of us and I can get organic vegetables very easily so it isn't really worth the effort of producing my own. I plan to plant as many bird food plants as I can, focusing on native palnts as much as possible. I'd like to plant the vegetable area particularly in High-bush Cranberry, Wild Raisin and Saskatoon Berries. I'll also plant Sumac but need to be careful where because it can be very invasive. There are already alot of wild roses and wild Mountain Ash around the place but I will look at whether I should plant more.
I'm making brush piles here and there around the palce (I'm still cutting up trees that came down in Hurricane Juan) and putting up nest boxes.
The bad news is that I seem to have lost all of my Goldfish this Winter. They had survived very nicely in the pond for the last five years but this year they all died. We experienced a lot of erosian on my next door neighbours plowed field back before Christmas. Soil blew across my my place until everything turned red. I suspect that the resulting silt in the pond may have killed the fish.
Oh well!!
Oh, Celeste, it seems like this is not a good time for Carolina wrens and their kids!
I gleefully reported that "my" c.wren eggs had hatched a week ago....then I realized a couple days ago that there was no parent activity around the nest. Sure enough, today I took the basket with roosting pouch-turned-into-nest down and peeked. One dead baby...pretty good sized, however, but nothing else. There were originally 5 eggs. No shells, no nothin'!
The basket has hung in a spot where I didn't think any predator could reach them...however, there was much chirping and scolding by a parent early this week when a chipmunk was running around under where the basket was hanging. Would a chipmunk somehow get in there? I expect it is entirely possible....sadly.
I don't know what to suggest about your four eggs, Celeste....except to wait a few days and see if mom/dad return. Doesn't sound so good, though.
(
I gleefully reported that "my" c.wren eggs had hatched a week ago....then I realized a couple days ago that there was no parent activity around the nest. Sure enough, today I took the basket with roosting pouch-turned-into-nest down and peeked. One dead baby...pretty good sized, however, but nothing else. There were originally 5 eggs. No shells, no nothin'!
The basket has hung in a spot where I didn't think any predator could reach them...however, there was much chirping and scolding by a parent early this week when a chipmunk was running around under where the basket was hanging. Would a chipmunk somehow get in there? I expect it is entirely possible....sadly.
I don't know what to suggest about your four eggs, Celeste....except to wait a few days and see if mom/dad return. Doesn't sound so good, though.
(Now you've got me worried - my pair have been nested for at least 10 days now - was going to look up incubation time but haven't - Mrs. glares out at me if I peek inside - she even let Mr. join her last night at bedtime (during the winter she kicked him out a few times!). Likewise, I say wait and see what "nature" does -not much else you can do.
Had a brief visitor yesterday - lucky I was looking out window - as rose breasted grosebeak flew by - thought "that's a different bird" and found him at back feeders feasting. Got some photos with binocam but the better digital was full of turkeys and I had to learn how to delete them - I'm ready now if he comes back. Seems he makes a yearly stop off here for refueling!
Had a brief visitor yesterday - lucky I was looking out window - as rose breasted grosebeak flew by - thought "that's a different bird" and found him at back feeders feasting. Got some photos with binocam but the better digital was full of turkeys and I had to learn how to delete them - I'm ready now if he comes back. Seems he makes a yearly stop off here for refueling!
Have seen two male r-breasted grosbeaks and one female so far. They usually stay here for the summer. Tried to post a picture, but the file size was to large.
Saw my first hummer today! Had my feeders out for a week.
Sorry about your bear problem Celeste. Glad to hear your wren returned.
I too, preferred the old site. Doesn't seem like too many people from the old site post here. I know I don't visit this site very often. I think people have shied away from it because it's harder to find your way around.
Saw my first hummer today! Had my feeders out for a week.
Sorry about your bear problem Celeste. Glad to hear your wren returned.
I too, preferred the old site. Doesn't seem like too many people from the old site post here. I know I don't visit this site very often. I think people have shied away from it because it's harder to find your way around.
I mistakenly (I guess!) posted my news about my Carolina wrens re-nesting over on Today at the Feeder.....well, just for the 'record', the pair have again built a lovely little nest smack dab in the middle of my hanging fuschia, as they have for the past two years. There are no eggs yet, but I am hoping. It looks all ready!
How are your babies doing, Sara? And have your eggs hatched, Celeste? I am keeping my fingers crossed that when (or 'if') eggs appear, that they are not found by whatever predator destroyed the first batch.
One of the wrens did really dive-bomb a pesky chipmunk yesterday....three separate times! She/he really hit the chippie pretty hard! Don't know if chipmunks are a true threat or not....but this one was definitely not wanted around!
How are your babies doing, Sara? And have your eggs hatched, Celeste? I am keeping my fingers crossed that when (or 'if') eggs appear, that they are not found by whatever predator destroyed the first batch.
One of the wrens did really dive-bomb a pesky chipmunk yesterday....three separate times! She/he really hit the chippie pretty hard! Don't know if chipmunks are a true threat or not....but this one was definitely not wanted around!
snowyowl
Well-known member
Nice pictures, Shar! I'm still hoping for a Rose-breasted Grosbeak to show up at my feeders. I'm hearing reports of them being in the area.shar said:
Last Wednesday I started volunteering (on a trial basis) at a banding station. If I like it, I'll be going there probably two days a week for the next month. So far all we've done is get the nets and poles in place, put the tent up and that sort of thing. The actual netting should begin tomorrow, although i won't be there until Tuesday (weather permitting). Apparently netting isn't done on rainy days because catching the birds in wet nets is harder on the birds. Last summer I volunteered as a Pinping Plover guardian and it was fun. I got to spend lots of time walking empty beaches but it involve too much driving to get to the locations so this season I'll check out banding.
I'll let you all know how it goes.
Sounds like fun, Dan....I helped a Purdue grad student about 9 years ago with catching and banding birds (his dissertation was on woodthrushes) .....all I ever did was help take birds out of mist nets. But I loved helping with it.....and to actually hold one of these birds was just fabulous. Got to see them 'up close and personal"!
Also learned that tufted titmice will peck at your cuticles until you want to scream....that woodthrushes are very laid back...just sort of hang there and wait to be rescued....and that cardinals have REALLY powerful beaks! (titmice also screeched and carried on from the time you'd touch them, until you set them free....never stopped!!!....well, that was between pecks at your cuticles! Ha!)
Also learned that tufted titmice will peck at your cuticles until you want to scream....that woodthrushes are very laid back...just sort of hang there and wait to be rescued....and that cardinals have REALLY powerful beaks! (titmice also screeched and carried on from the time you'd touch them, until you set them free....never stopped!!!....well, that was between pecks at your cuticles! Ha!)
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Sounds like fun, Dan....I helped a Purdue grad student about 9 years ago with catching and banding birds (his dissertation was on woodthrushes) .....all I ever did was help take birds out of mist nets. But I loved helping with it.....and to actually hold one of these birds was just fabulous. God to see them 'up close and personal"!
Also learned that tufted titmice will peck at your cuticles until you want to scream....that woodthrushes are very laid back...just sort of hang there and wait to be rescued....and that cardinals have REALLY powerful beaks! (titmice also screeched and carried on from the time you'd touch them, until you set them free....never stopped!!!....well, that was between pecks at your cuticles! Ha!)
Also learned that tufted titmice will peck at your cuticles until you want to scream....that woodthrushes are very laid back...just sort of hang there and wait to be rescued....and that cardinals have REALLY powerful beaks! (titmice also screeched and carried on from the time you'd touch them, until you set them free....never stopped!!!....well, that was between pecks at your cuticles! Ha!)
