It seems an old dog can indeed learn new tricks. Our good friends, Steve and Jewel, have recently taken up bird feeding at their beautifully renovated farmstead in Fillmore County, Minnesota. (Here pictured on our trip to France.)Now while birding with binocs in hand and tramping in the woods with my GSD Baron is a relatively new activity for me..... birding feeding is not. That I've been doing for decades. So when Mrs T & Jewel came back from a visit to a local bird store with lots of fresh seed, I wasn't too impressed. I've been getting that stuff at the big box store a lot cheaper, I thought. The result though was a lot more winter birds at my backyard feeders. Mmmmmm.
So when Steve and Jewel added a bird bath and mealworms to their "attractors," I was paying attention. Particulary after the following pictures were sent showing bluebirds and rose breasted grosbeaks right outside their dining room window. This was before anyone else was reporting these birds in our area. Mmmmmm.
So when Steve and Jewel added a bird bath and mealworms to their "attractors," I was paying attention. Particulary after the following pictures were sent showing bluebirds and rose breasted grosbeaks right outside their dining room window. This was before anyone else was reporting these birds in our area. Mmmmmm.
Not being entirely a slow learner, I followed suit with the rehyrated meal worms. Yesterday, a first at my feeder. A warbler was sitting their with the chickadees and nuthatches wolfing down the new delicacy. It was a "butter butt" i.e. a Yellow Rumped Warbler.
This old dog had indeed learned some new tricks.....
I'll have to give those a shot too. I remember the first time a Rose Breasted Grosbeak stopped at one of my feeders. I was so excited and the battery was dead on my camera :( Fortunately he came back for several days before migrating on North.
ReplyDeleteI have so many goldfinches, chickadees, nuthatches and sparrows (several kinds) that I am a little hesitant at adding something to entice new ones to my front porch. I also have flickers, woodpecker, and the occasional hawk show up. I'd be interested in hearing more about your adventures with new birds. Love the shot of the warbler!
ReplyDeleteI enjoy seeing the Rose Breasted Grosbeaks. They love Black Oil Sunflower, and I have a tray attached right to my deck rail...I can get reasonably good pics through the dining room glass door. I also get Black Headed Grosbeaks here.
ReplyDeleteYou can raise your own worms, there are a few sites to use for reference.I spent the day looking for Indigo Buntings coming home, sighting one pair.
ReplyDeleteThere is something to offering different feeds. When I had money (what?) I used to fill one feeder with sunflower hearts. The grosbeak was at the ready to gulp them down, along with Mr. Cardinal.
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There ya go..you could raise your own worms..I thought about it once. I am not sure I can get rehydrated meal worms up here in the boonies.but I often worry about the Bluebirds feeding their young:)
ReplyDeletei don't feed meal worms, but i do supply plenty of mixed seed, niger and sunflower seed as well as chicken scratch at the pond's edge for the ducks and turtles. i also toss out a handful of dog food every now and again for the crows (they love it!) one could easily go broke feeding these lovelies!
ReplyDeleteIf you feed them, they will come. Here's to more happy hours watching your backyard birds.
ReplyDeleteCool!
ReplyDeleteI've got niger for the goldfinches and sunflower seeds for everybody else + in shell peanuts for the scrub jays I'm working on taming to hand feedings.... thinking maybe next year to add a bluebird nest box and if so I"ll keep the mealworms in mind!
I haven't seen many different birds yet this spring. The ever present sparrows, a few robins and too many black birds.
ReplyDeletePerhaps they don't like what I have been serving for dinner Maybe I should try something new!
xo Catherine
Rehydrated meal worms? I never considered that possibility, so maybe that's why every critter other than the bluebirds were absconding with the dry stuff I put out every day. That Rose breasted grosbeak looks content in the midst of all that bird seed.
ReplyDeleteIt was fun seeing you learn new tricks! Great example, I would call that a success! I appreciated you comments about success the other day. I agree there is a lot more to success than just fame and fortune. I believe friendships and family are way more important. Thanks for reminding me of this.
ReplyDeleteIt is a nice variety of birds to show up at the feeders.
ReplyDeleteYou have some beautiful birds pictured here. I like it!
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