Winter Feeding

Top Left: Mountain Ash, Pine Grosbeak, Highbush Cranberry, frozen Apples, Staghorn Sumac, Bohemian Waxwing.

Feeding fruit in the winter will attract a whole different group of birds than the seed feeders. Apples are probably the easiest and cheapest, seconds and “deer apples” are available from local growers at a very reasonable price. Birds tend to like them after they've been frozen for a while, like the ones that have been hanging in the branch all winter. If you have a fruit tree in your yard it's a good idea tramp the snow down and throw diced apples on the ground under the tree. They will be eating dropped fruit anyway and this just keeps the source from running out, most fruit eaters are described “vagrant species” and will stay with you as long as there is food, when it’s gone, so are they. You can also feed fruit on a raised platform, in a suet cage right in the tree or even in a bird bath that’s not being used. I’ve had birds come to suction cup mounted feeders on the window for fruit.

Fruit eating birds like Robins, Waxwings, Orioles and Mockingbirds will also come for globe grapes, bananas, cranberries and parboiled raisins if you can afford it. You can also plant mountain ash, high-bush cranberry, hawthorn, sumac and grapes. It’s a good idea to harvest some of this fruit and freeze it for feeding later in the winter, especially grapes as the raccoons will strip the vine before hibernation.

Providing shelter is always a good way to increase traffic to your feeders and even more so in winter. Birds like shelter from the cold prevailing winds and from predators, a totally open landscape is not too likely to attract many visitors on a cold windy day, a temporary fix is to stick some trees in the snow, tie them to a post or even the feeder pole itself. Old Christmas trees are great, before our trees got big enough to provide cover, I would pick up trees that were with the roadside garbage and give them a few more months of usefulness, birds love the shelter from wind and from cruising hawks.

A brush pile is a great way to attract birds, I like to start with a half sheet of plywood to make a lean to, open to the South. The coldest Northerly winds will be deflected up and over the opening, and the sun will shine in the South facing opening warming the area. Then I cover the whole thing with branches, I try to gather interesting drift wood and other branches so it’s a bit more appealing to the eye. I like to feed millet right inside the pile, even though you can’t always see the sparrows and junco eating, you’ll see them coming and going and when they perch on the highest branches of the pile to survey territory. By placing the branches close enough together you can exclude pigeons from the feed inside. If you put a platform feeder in the middle of the pile, you’ll be able to keep more seed out and it will stay fresher.

Platform feeders are popular with a very wide range of birds and they can accommodate large flocks at one time, even the smaller finch that you normally think of as using small tube feeders will crowd onto a platform feeder, that is until a larger bird comes along. Commercially available platform feeders are made of plastic or perforated metal, but they can be simply a piece of wood with a ridge nailed around the outside to keep the seed from blowing off. A better design is a frame with wire mesh on the bottom for drainage, then they are either placed on top of a post or mounted on 4 legs, coffee table style. I used to think bigger was better when I made my platform feeders, now I favour smaller sizes. First, if it’s small enough you won’t need a support board across the middle that will end up catching droppings and seed dust; and if it’s smaller the birds tend to sit on the edge more, where their droppings land on the ground rather than on the seed.

Covered platforms seem like a great idea, but they are less likely to be used by birds than the simple open platform, I assume it’s because they can’t see oncoming predators. The higher the roof, the more the birds seem to like it, but with the high roof, more snow and rain blows in. After a snowfall, especially of the crusty topped Maritime variety, the covered platforms may be the only feeders open for business, then they do get more action, but the birds seem wary to spend too much time under the roof. I like to keep at least one covered platform in use for those mornings I don’t drag myself out before dawn.

A little advice on making your own platform feeder: make 2 identical square frames out of about 1 x 1 ½ inch stock, staple hardware cloth (¼ or ½ inch) to one frame then window screen to the other. Sandwich the 2 together and mount with the screen facing up (use screws to make replacing the screen easier). The hardware cloth offers more support for the screen but, most importantly...if a squirrel happens along a snow covered platform, he doesn’t shovel the snow off, he chews a hole in the screen and eats his way into the feeder under the snow, where he is hidden from predators and is likely quite warm in his little improvised igloo. Then you come along quite unaware of the little furry bandit and use your arm to shove the snow off the chest high platform feeder. Let’s just say that it startles you more than a little when a squirrel pops out of the pile of snow in the crook of your elbow, bounds up your arm, launches himself off your shoulder and into the tree. Then to add to the insult, when you look up from your flat-on-the-back position under the feeder, the squirrel is on an overhanging branch scolding you. So I repeat, hardware cloth is a good idea on the bottom.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Winter Feeding

Probably the most overlooked ingredient to a complete feeders station is grit. When reminded, everyone remembers their high school biology, birds don’t have teeth, they need grit to grind food in their gizzards. You may be supplying grit without realizing it, if you use sand on the drive way or side walk, instead of just salt, birds will no doubt pick up enough grit there. When there is icy snow cover and natural grit sources are buried, the Department of Highways is spreading a huge supply, the problem is, it’s right down the middle of the highway, not the safest place for birds to drop in for this necessity.

The finch species seem to be especially drawn to this salty sand, I’ve seen Pine Grosbeak, Red Crossbills, White-winged Crossbills, Evening Grosbeak, Pine Siskins, Redpoll, and Goldfinch; but other species are on the road to pick up grit. At home in PEI the Snow Bunting are thick on the road, the way they pick up in front of a car and land behind it reminds me of those aerodynamics-testing wind tunnels you see on car commercials. Many of these road side foragers don’t make it, I remember a few years ago, a friend was collecting several dead Pine Grosbeak every trip to Moncton.

I’ve tried several types of grit and haven’t found one to work any better than the other. I bought chicken grit from the feed store, since it was a supply of calcium I thought it might be a double whammy and attract even more birds. I tried egg shells, thinking that since Jays and Crows are blamed for robbing nests for the calcium found in egg shells, they would flock to the offering. I collected egg shells, (I mean a lot, I got one of the breakfast people at the Market to save a 5 gallon bucket full every week), these were lightly toasted and crushed into smaller pieces as per the directions in a bird feeding guide I read somewhere. I put them on a platform feeder and spread them on the ground away from other grit so I could witness the frenzy of birds that would be attracted. The results were underwhelming, sure the odd bird would partake, but not even as many as on the driveway sand. Most of my work got dumped on the tomato patch where it was equally ignored by birds, we did however have a great tomato crop.

Most of the birds I see on the grit just land for a couple seconds and get the couple pieces they require, the Mourning Doves seem to be the one that really go for the sand, I suppose it has something to do with their practice of eating the whole seed, even sunflower, I often see Doves load up on seed, then pick up some grit and retire to a sunny perch to digest. It must take a strong gizzard and quite a bit of sand to grind a sunflower seed, shell and all; and that also explains the size of their droppings that they insist on placing in my birdbath.

An interesting thought: I hear the “Free Range Chicken Man” beside me at the Market talking about feeding practices for his birds, they have shelter at night but not the climate controlled buildings of the commercial operations. They feed ground laying mash in the morning, but at night they feed whole oats, the action of the gizzard on the grain helps increase body temperature. I wonder if this has anything to do with Mourning Doves spreading north over the last couple decades and being able to survive the winters. They do seem to be the last birds at the feeder in the evening, staying until almost total darkness before heading into the deeper woods for the night. I’ll have to note if they stay later on extremely cold nights...

Raw suet is likely the first ingredient man ever fed to birds, think of the Gray Jay’s nickname, Moose Bird, because of it’s uncanny ability to show up where ever there’s this food offering in the deep woods. Winter is the time to feed raw suet, when you read warnings about not feeding suet in the summer this is the stuff they are talking about, not the processed kind. In the heat it spoils, but worse still, it drips and sticks to the birds feathers hindering flight. In the winter though it’s a magnet, all the Woodpeckers, including the occasional Pileated, Blue and Gray Jays, Chickadees and Nuthatch really go for it. This suet is 100% fat, no additives or fillers here, and the same as with humans, fat equals calories, but in the bird world calories mean survival, not a larger pants size.

Big chunks of raw suet are a little hard to come by these days as most beef is processed in a large plant and shipped to the local butchers by the side; with all that good fat removed. It’s not very cost effective to buy the little bags of ground suet at the grocery store. If you know someone at the local abattoir, you can often pick up a winters supply of raw suet quite cheap.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Picture: Not an overly pretty site, a big hunk of raw suet makes a great bird feeder. This one is hanging off our deck rail,

my wife will be glad that I finally got the picture so I can move it out of the kitchen window. The dog is going to miss it however,

he spends a lot of time trying to figure out a way to reach it.

Bird Houses as Roosting Boxes

My son painted this birdhouse when he was 3 and 4, the red was easy, the yellow and green, we taped off with masking tape so he could keep in the lines. He gave it to his mother for Christmas. When I noticed the hole was enlarged I thought I would make the edges smoother and repaint the flower. After I finished, I hung it on our deck to prevent any further renovations. A couple days later I heard pecking on the deck and couldn’t see any birds, then I noticed the buoy house rocking. I backed off and watched the chips flying out of the hole. This was in spring and I thought maybe we were going to get a woodpecker nest right here.

When the bird looked out of the hole I was surprised to see it was a Hairy Woodpecker. This house is really quite small inside, more of a Chickadee size, so I was thinking Downy Woodpecker. As the work continued I expected to see her break through and leave a hole in the side, but I guess they know when to stop. All spring and summer she was in the house from dusk to dawn apparently not nesting anywhere else. If she did, dad spent the night on the eggs and not her.

I would feel bad if I forgot and used the front door and scared her off through the night, so I started moving it bit by bit down the deck so it wasn’t so close to the door. (and for our own benefit as well, it scares the daylights out of you to have a Hairy Woodpecker zoom past your head in the dark and squawk in your ear, I’m convinced this is a defense mechanism.....startle your enemy while you make your escape....I wonder if I could use the technique on certain customers....hmmmm) Now we can quietly come and go without making her fly off. She just pops up and looks out the hole until we leave.

It seems now that most of our bird houses are occupied in the night by woodpeckers. I haven’t found any other species coming out in the morning or being scared of through the night, but we have a least seven Downy and now one Hairy Woodpecker bedding down in our yard. I’ll wait until spring and put some fresh houses out for the Swallows.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Winter Yard List Competition as of Feb 24

Last day of competition is February 28 at Mid-Night, get your list to me asap and I'll announce the winner of the feeder station in the column on the second Saturday in March.

This is a cumulative list of all reports sent in, the individual leader has 26 species on her list, good work Catherine.

1. Hairy Woodpecker

2. Chickadee

3. Downy Woodpecker

4. Blue Jay

5. Gray Jay

6. Crow

7. Dark-eyed Junco

8. Bald Eagle

9. Starling

10. Pileated Woodpecker

11. Red-breasted Nuthatch

12. American Goldfinch

13. Pine Siskin

14. Common Redpoll

15. Mourning Dove

16. Pigeon

17. Bohemian Waxwing

18. Sharp-shinned Hawk

19. American Robin

20. Northern Shrike

21. Snow Bunting

22. White-winged Crossbill

23. Carolina Wren

24. Canada Goose

25. White-throated Sparrow

26. Evening Grosbeak

27. American Tree Sparrow

28. Raven

29. Merlin

30. Boreal Chickadee

31. Red-winged Blackbird

32. Purple Finch

33. Peregrine Falcon

34. Red-tailed Hawk

35. Yellow-rumped Warbler

36. Ring-necked Pheasant

37. Cedar Waxwing

Fall Guide to Winter and Spring Preparation.

Move feeders closer to your house.

In the summer it’s a good idea to have your feeders farther from your house, you are outside more, using your decks etc and you would be scaring the birds away. In winter your not outside as much and you don’t want to be trudging through the snow to fill feeders. This practice also gives that patch of lawn a break from seed shells and droppings. If you are using shepherds hooks, you’ll want to get them in the ground before it freezes. If the hooks use a stake that you drive in the ground first and then place the pole into the stake, it’s only smart to buy another stake. It’s gotta be worth a couple bucks so you don’t have to pull the stake out and drive it into the ground in another site. Once you have 2 in the ground you can move them back and forth in minutes each season. Kinda like having an extra set of rims for your snow tires.

One year that I wasn’t ready and we had a ton of snow, talked my wife into giving up the close line for the rest of the winter. Stop feeding on the line early enough in the spring though or the birds will be hanging around over the clean laundry looking for food, that always ends poorly.

If you have your feeders in trees and can move them closer it’s a good idea as well, although there’s no rush. I have a couple of deck mounted brackets that I like to use for seed in the winter, I’m not sitting out and am shoveling the deck anyway so the mess isn’t an issue. In summer I move the seed feeders into the tree and place a Hummingbird feeder and hanging basket on these hangers. About 90% of my winter feeder pictures are taken on this hanger from the comfort of my kitchen window. I test new feeder designs there too, if the birds like them I take pictures for my website, if they don’t like them, the wood stove is just inside the door. Some years I can almost heat the house with bad ideas.

Plan really far ahead and save work starting that new flower bed.

One of my favourite flower beds got started 2 years before we actually planted anything. I outlined the bed in the fall and tilled the ground a couple times. Then I placed a shepherds hook in the middle and fed sunflower seeds there all winter. In spring, I carefully made my way through the bed of sunflower sprouts and removed the feeders and pole. I did nothing else to the bed all summer, the sunflowers choked out all weeds and looked beautiful. (They are also beneficial to the soil.) A year from starting I had a bird magnet when the sunflowers matured, they also provided shelter all winter. In the spring the flower stalks easily pulled out and I had a beautiful weed free palate to plant. Well……for my wife to plant, my work was done. I’ve done this with millet as well, with great results; although the bed looks totally different and you get different birds. I suppose you could do it with mixed seed, but you would probably end up growing mostly what the birds don’t like, as it would be left behind to grow, and unlike millet and sunflower the junk might over winter and become a weed problem in your flower bed.

This might be a good time to mention that nyjer seed doesn’t grow here, it might except the importing seed company has to sterilize it so they don’t import some exotic weed that would take over everything else, like the purple loosestrife problem. So you can’t try saving a few bucks growing your own but you don’t have to worry about growing thistles in your garden; a common misconception as they are actually a small sunflower/daisy like plant. (Guizotia abyssinica for those of you who use the wikipedia.)

Plan where you will place your birdhouses for next year.

It seems that once the mosquitoes are gone for the summer they are forgotten about until next year. If you want to incorporate some “natural insect control” into your pest management plan, you have to at least think about it now. I always get inquiries about bats, Tree Swallow, and of course Purple Martin, in the height of the mosquito season. By then it’s simply too late, then you say to yourself, “I’ve got lots of time.” Before you know it the grounds frozen, you can’t get any post in the ground and the swallows are back. You don’t have to get the houses out yet, but you really should drive some posts in the ground, so next March all you have to do is screw the houses on. Since Tree Swallow houses can be as low as 5 feet, a sharpened 8 foot cedar stake works great. Drive a few posts in the ground at good intervals, away from human and feeder traffic. The more you put out the better chance you have of getting a nest. Swallows have about an 85 foot territory, but it’s good to place extra as they can be a little picky about their real estate. Please note that Tree Swallows don’t like nesting in trees; go figure; probably because of squirrels. Even if the squirrel hasn’t claimed the house for itself, the birds may feel a threat from predation. Bat houses should be at least 12 feet high in full sun, so that may take a little more planning. Purple Martins haven’t been seen nesting in southeastern NB for over 10 years, so I would plan on another bird for now, as they require elaborate houses and poles that will probably end up being used by European Starlings.

Cliff and Barn Swallows will nest on shelves placed under the eave of a house or garage. They too will eat insects.

Sometime between now and spring clean out any nests that you had in existing houses and maybe give them all a quick check for other things like old hornet or mouse nests that you may not have noticed, these will keep birds from using the house. If you think you have hornets wait until freeze up.

Getting out of a little work.

Don’t clean up too much, a messy yard is attractive to birds. Tall flower stalks give cover from predators and the dead flower heads provide seeds. The dead plants also catch snow that will insulate plants and will keep the soil from washing and blowing away. This is what I tell my wife anyway and it seems get me out of the work, until spring. If you think your ready to take procrastination to the next level…..dead leaves provide cover for the worms and insects that will in turn attract a variety of birds. You’ll see robins, sparrows and others scratching them up and flipping them over to get food that is hiding underneath. It’ll take a little convincing but if you sound sure of yourself and stick to your story you won’t be raking leaves this fall.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Top 10 ways to keep squirrels off your bird feeders.

Here’s my list of ways to squirrel proof your bird feeders, some are practical and some are just plain fun.

From least to most effective:

10. Squirrel away hot pepper additive. It’s not as popular as it once was, the squirrels seem to acquire a taste for it. The main reason I never sold it is the warning to not get it in your eyes when filling your feeders. If it irritates your eyes, what does it do to birds when it blows in their eyes? It’s expensive, doesn’t work great and has the potential to harm birds.

9. Install a very clean glass panel between the squirrels take off point and the bird feeder. You’ll also want to tripod mount your video camera on the feeder side of the glass and win a bunch of money from Funniest Home Videos.

8. Chase the squirrels away with a remote control off road toy truck and/or helicopter,

depending on your needs.

7. Put the receiver end of an old baby monitor in the feeder, you can yell at the squirrels, have the dog bark or play hawk sounds into the transmitter. If you train the dog right this can work while your away too, at least until they get used to it, which is usually about 5 minutes.

6. The trap and release program. This is a very popular form of squirrel control in the

Moncton area….very popular, every day I talk to people from the north end who drive their squirrels to the south end, west to east and vice versa. Do you see where this is going? People think the same squirrels are finding their way back to the yards, I wonder if they aren’t getting a drive. I tried this once and found that when I relocated my old time dominant pair because they got into my barn, I ended up with about 15 subordinate squirrels that until then were being chased away.

5. Plastic or polycarbonate domes over the feeders work well if they are placed right. They also have the added benefit of weather proofing the feeder. The main problem is cost, you need one for each feeder you put out and you usually need the largest ones to be the most effective. I had a small dome over a suet feeder and the squirrels learned to hold on with a hind leg, shimmy over the edge and when the dome tipped enough they would let go and grab the suet cage on the way down. The most fun we had for a long time was when we added a second larger dome under the small one and watched the squirrels ricochet off and land on the ground, very unimpressed. Domes should be hung from the lowest branch on a tree or on a cloths line, they don’t work on the shepherds hook hangers.

4. A cloths line is a great bird feeder hanger, it’s cheap and can usually be placed higher than most hangers if you need to. You can thread it through cans or short pieces of hose to make rollers on each end to knock the squirrels off. Or use in conduction with domes to make a nice station.

3. Squirrel proof feeders work with varying degrees of success. Make sure you read the fine print as a lot of them are effective only against gray squirrels, most of the caged feeders have a large enough opening to allow reds in, (they will thank you for the safe haven and diner), the one that spins the squirrel off isn’t triggered by one red but two will set it off. The last time I saw two red squirrels on a feeder at once was five minutes before I saw them mating. Two minutes after that, they were fighting again. There is apparently a feeder that delivers a mild electric shock when a squirrel touches the tray and the port at the same time. This isn’t necessary. The best one I found is the Squirrel Buster Plus, (spring the extra for the “Plus”, the regular one doesn’t work), the weight of the squirrel closes off the feeder ports. The best part of this feeder is that it’s totally adjustable and can be set to even keep Grackles and Jays off. I actually sell more of these to keep off Pigeons than for squirrels, they are quite expensive but a great way to feed Cardinals, Grosbeaks, etc. if Pigeons won’t leave the feeders alone.

2. Diversionary feeders, that is, squirrel feeders, add to the effectiveness of the other squirrel proofing techniques. If you make it hard for them to get on some feeders and easy to get on others the will usually go where it’s easy. There are lots of these on the market, most involve trying to get the squirrels to eat corn. I’ve found you will have to offer something a little better to be most effective.

1. The most effective thing we have for keeping the squirrels of the feeders is the 4-10. Now let me explain, when we started selling to a distributer we had to give every thing a code and the code should reflect what the item is. We make a 10 foot pole with 4 hangers, I didn’t want to call it the 10-4 because it reminded me of that old CB radio song. So I called the 4-10…...this went along without anyone saying a thing until one day in the shop a nice older lady asked me what was best for keeping squirrels of the feeder. I replied “that would be the old 4-10” and turned to point it out. That was when she whacked me with her purse, called me an awful person and stormed out. In my defense, just because I live in Albert County doesn’t mean I know that a 4-10 is a shot gun and would be highly recommended for squirrel. It was totally innocent and if you are the lady or know her, I apologize. So, the best thing we have is the 4-10 with a baffle on the pole below the feeders, this is cheaper than 1 squirrel proof feeder and is also effective against raccoons.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Questions from Readers

Q. Last week you mentioned feeding peanut butter to attract a different variety of birds like a “Brown Creeper”. I haven’t seen this bird but I’ve read that you shouldn’t feed peanut butter to birds.

A. This has to be one of the toughest myths to break, every now and then someone writes a story about it and it’s back. Years ago, while looking into it, I contacted Cornell University, very well known for Ornithology, and was told they have never found a dead bird with any peanut butter in it’s crop that couldn’t otherwise be explained. For instance, a dead bird would be brought to them for study, it was found on the ground under a large picture window, it’s neck was broken, there was some peanut butter in it’s crop; it would be a real stretch to say that the peanut butter was the cause of death.

In my own observations…..I feed peanut butter all the time, I have never found a bird choking or even in any distress after eating. Last fall, while moving a large container, the bottom of the barrel broke out dumping about 15 gallons of peanut butter on my driveway. For the next couple weeks hundreds of European Starlings and my dog chowed down, I’m happy (mostly) to say that not a single Starling was found dead.

As for feeding it intentionally, I spread it on tree bark in the fall and winter to attract the Brown Creeper, as I mentioned. If you don’t have any deep crevices in the bark a peanut butter feeder can be made of quarter inch wire raised off the backing about half an inch, you push the peanut butter through the grid and it is held quite well. It is best to attach it directly to the trunk as opposed to hanging it. The Creeper seems to be about the only bird that prefers straight peanut butter instead of a suet mix.

The Brown Creeper is incredibly camouflaged, it’s the colour of most tree bark and clings to the trunk woodpecker style. When you see it foraging for the first time you will no doubt think “mouse”. Before my son could talk he was calling it the “mouse bird”, my wife taught him some sign language and he would make the sign for “mouse” when he saw one, he’s 5 now and still calls it a “mouse bird”.

If you want to see this incredible little brown bird, I would first suggest going to FindSounds.com and check out the vocalizations. It’s a very high pitch so some of us older dudes have a hard time hearing it. When you’re in your yard and hear this sound, go to that area and watch between the trees for movement, the bird feeds from the bottom up in a spiral movement. The easiest thing to see is the bird leaving the upper trunk of one tree and going to the base of another, when you know which tree it’s on you will be able to see it as it goes around and is on the side of the tree not superimposed on the bark.

Q. I would like to take part in the Winter Yardlist competition, but I’m going to be away for a couple weeks in February. I don’t want to attract a lot of birds, have them dependent on me and leave them dry in the winter. What should I do?

(I asked some questions and found the writer lives in Downtown Shediac and the neighbours on either side also feed birds.)

A. It’s not that big if a deal if the feeders go empty for a couple weeks in most areas. There are plenty of people feeding these days and birds will make the rounds of the neighborhood. When you return it may take a couple days for them to put you back on their regular route. I would fill the feeders before you leave and not worry about it. If it makes you feel better, you could leave a stock for someone to refill your feeders and I have a couple of “way too big” feeders that I would be willing to lend you for a couple weeks if that would help. Also mention to the immediate neighbours that you’ll be away (always a good idea anyway) and maybe they could be extra diligent with feeding for that period. Remember that in the wild, birds eat or stash away what is available, when it’s gone they move on to a new source. Occasionally we get a distinctive bird, whether it be a rarity, has special markings like an albino or has a band; we can get an idea of how far they travel looking for food by the reports that come through. It varies greatly with species but can be quite an area, including many feeder yards.

Q. You mentioned offering water in winter by using a heated bird bath. Is it OK to put a heater in a cement bird bath?

A. I used to, now I see that it isn’t recommended, they say that if you let it freeze any tiny cracks in the cement will get bigger from the expansion of the ice the bird bath will eventually leak. I used mine for years with no problem, the reason I switched was the bird bath was quite shallow, which is what you want for a bird bath. In the winter though, with the extra dry winds coupled with the heater, the bath was going empty in less than a day from evaporation. Since water in winter is for drinking rather than bathing it’s OK to have a deeper dish. What I use now is a stainless bowl set into a wooden box that is attached to the corner of the deck rail for winter, much like you install a sink. I found the heater works better if the box is enclosed rather than having the bowl directly exposed to the cold winds. After lining the inside of the box with styrofoam insulation, it worked so well that I put the heater on a timer to shut off after dark and since the is thermostatically controlled I assume the insulated box saves on power.

There is a homemade heated bird bath made like this with a light bulb in the box under the bowl. I’ve heard from a few people that they work well, if my heater ever breaks down I will definitely try this.

Q. A question from me to you: Two weeks ago I wrote about Blue Jays, since that time our yard numbers dropped from 40 something to around 8 that will hopefully stay for the winter. Has anyone else noted a drastic decrease in Blue Jay activity?

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Where have all the birds gone?

Q. Where have all the birds gone?

A. If I said I was asked this question 50 times this week I don’t think I’m exaggerating. Here’s my theory, I don’t think you have to be worried, it’s just a very good winter for birds that decide to hang around New Brunswick. Quite a few “askers” of the question added, “but last year…” Last year I couldn’t even make it to the compost pile without snow shoes. My son (4 at the time) who I out weigh 4 fold could run around on top no problem. I read in a Mountain Equipment article that when you punch through the snow and plunge to your nether regions, it’s referred to as “post holing”. I made the mistake of telling him this and every time I would break through, was struggling to free myself and thinking I really should teach the kid CPR, he would trot over, stay just out of reach and yell “post hole” in my ear. But, I digress…

My leg ( I just measured) is 35 inches and I didn’t bottom out, so needless to say, most of the shrubs and flowers that we plant and let grow wild were snow covered. I’ve always noticed when a bird has the choice between fresh “natural” seed and that in a feeder, they usually choose the seed on the stem. Seed companies even expect a decrease in nyjer seed consumption in early summer that coincides with the dandelion seed maturing. Not being one to use sprays or even cut the grass too often I notice most of the finch enjoying dandelion seeds. In winter we don’t deadhead anything and notice the Purple Coneflower, aka Echinacea, to be a finch winter favourite, not that this flower needs any more good press.

This year, a walk in the woods or through a wild meadow is turning up quite a few birds, and since this habitat is more spread out than feeder yards, I’m hoping there are just as many or more birds in New Brunswick than last year. This theory gains traction every time there is a little blast of winter, activity at my feeders and reports from others increase. Also, over the last couple weeks there has been a slow steady rise in numbers of the birds you do expect at feeders, Mourning Dove, Chickadee, Goldfinch and Blue Jays (probably because they forgot where they hid the bushels of peanuts from last summer) are steadily increasing. The group I’m really missing this winter are the ground feeders, Sparrows and Junco are conspicuously absent, but they are the ones that would most take advantage of the wild seed that remains uncovered this winter.

The two common species of woodpecker, the Downy and Hairy, seem to remain constant year round. In the last few days however they are easier to pick out, they are starting to warm up their voices and tune up their drums in preparation for the breeding season. I often have 5 or 6 in one tree without noticing them, but when they are all doing the eeka, eeka, eeka, call or drumming on a particularly resonant branch, (stove pipe, ladder, window sill, or the favourite in our yard, the bat house) they are quite noticeable. The other woodpecker we are noticing more this week is the grandfather of them all, the Pileated, although not a common feeder visitor they can sure make themselves heard. Their distinctive calls are incredibly loud when the bird is near and their foraging is reminiscent of a wood carver with chisel and mallet, but the drumming of the Pileated can almost be felt in your spleen, like the bass at a rock concert.

One good thing that came out of the last two rugged winters, is how great the cloths line is for hanging bird feeders. I could put half a dozen feeders out with reasonable spacing and wouldn’t even have to change out of my slippers to fill them. Since then I use the cloths line all winter and will probably install another dedicated line this spring when my wife kicks me off. I have a great spot in mind that will run over some small thick shrubs, the feeders will be high enough for viewing but close enough for a quick dash to cover. Without a line I wouldn’t be able to easily make my way to the feeders and would have to cut a path that would also allow neighbourhood cats to hunt under the feeders. Not that I have a Pigeon problem, but I doubt a pigeon would be able to get through the thorny tangle to get at the spillage. A cloths line is a great way of getting your feeders out near the trees so the birds find them and get used to coming, then you can slowly move the feeder closer to the house for better viewing, all this and a cloths line is a fraction of the price of an iron hanger.

You’ll want to be able to remove the feeders easily so you can reel the line all the way in, I discovered these great little tarp clips from Lee Valley that keep the feeders from blowing together at one end of the line, before that I used shower curtain hangers with a cloths pin on either side.

I’ve had frequent conversations with one person who can’t seem to attract any birds to his feeders. Over the months we went through everything, he changed seed, got different feeders added suet and more, I was inclined to blame the mild winter for this but, his neighbours had all kinds of birds on the same things he is using. Finally one last inquiry may have solved the dilemma, all his feeders are placed under the roof of the veranda. Although this often works, I think at least some of the feeders should be place out near the trees, after the birds find these and settle in they will likely notice the feeders under the roof. I guess I should have asked for pictures or gone for a visit.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Binoculars or Scope for Beginners?

This is the last Saturday before the “Winter Yard List Competition”, if you missed the column a few weeks ago, I issued a challenge to count all the birds that you can see or hear from your yard from December 1 to February 28. The yard with the biggest list will win a fully equipped feeder station. A reminder that I have check lists available at the Moncton Market, a photo album is on our web site at thebirdgarden.ca and I will post the rules, under “Articles” then Winter List, for those who missed out.

To make things more interesting we are offering prizes for firsts, besides the grand prize for the biggest list, the first to report a species and the first identifiable photo of each species, so get out first thing December 1. The prizes will start small and get better as the list gets larger, the last 10 species will have a higher degree of difficulty than the first 10. Bear with me, I’m kind of making this up as I go along.

This is on your honor so new photos only please, don’t scour your old hard drives for photos.

Q. We want to take part in the yard count, our binoculars are ancient and we see double vision through them. I think a good pair of binoculars would be better and my husband wants a spotting scope, the more power the better. Who’s right?

A. Yikes, that’s a tough one, not because I don’t have an opinion, it’s that I don’t like getting in the middle of marital disagreements, but...here’s to hoping your husband isn’t really big with a bad temper.

I think you’re right of course. Most birders would use binoculars 90 percent of the time (or more) and the scope the rest. It’s hard to locate things with a scope because of the relatively narrow field of view, higher power makes it even worse, a scope is used to get a closer look at something after you locate it with binoculars. If you only have a scope there is added eyestrain from always using only one eye; I especially notice this when I do go places where I use a scope more, like hawk watch sites or scanning for shore birds.

Then there is the added inconvenience of carrying the tripod around, even if you are only using it in your yard you will likely want to look out different windows. You will have to fold up the tripod, and set it up in the new location, by then the bird has likely move on. I have several pair of binoculars in the house, trade ins and upgrades are strategically located on widow sills (with no straps, so the kid and the cats don’t pull them over), they aren’t in the case and the objective covers are long gone, all this slows you down, I do however love the “rain guard” cover that fits across both eyepieces, this keeps the dust of the eyepieces and they stand on the objective end to keep dust out. They take up very little room compared to a tripod mounted scope.

Also you have to think of cost, to get a scope that is any good at all, you are going to spend $300, then you need a decent tripod, that will cost another $250. I recommend a tripod head that is designed for video cameras rather than still photography, video heads are made for smooth easy panning. If you cut corners on the tripod it will shake in the wind, or worse, blow over and you break your scope. For much less than half the cost of a low end scope and tripod you could get an exceptional pair of binoculars, (or 2 pair for the same amount, then you don’t have to share). Over the years there have been several occasions where I had a scope, tripod, cases and all the accessories sold and to make conversation I ask what kind of binoculars they have, when they say they don’t have binoculars, I take a deep breath and weigh out my options……a bucket of money today or a happy birder and life long customer. I end up talking them out of the expensive scope and into a good binocular for much less money. It’s easy, we just take both out for a short walk around the yard, after setting up the tripod then carrying it on your shoulder you very soon see why I recommend binoculars first then a scope if you still need one. The couples who did this exercise ended up buying a second pair of binoculars down the road, before the scope.

If you have a view over a great distance you might be able to add a few species to your yard list with a scope. I can see the river from one bedroom and the Moncton Airport from another and have added a few species to our yardlist, but nothing compared to what I see with my binoculars, because they are always right there and ready.

I would try each out before buying anything, look at objects at the same distance as you will be using them in your yard. Sure you can see the Eagle that is soaring a mile away but if you can only see 100 feet in your yard you don’t need this.

By the way, you are seeing double vision with you binoculars because they are out of alignment. Binoculars are basically two tubes that have to be exactly parallel or you see double. This most often results from dropping or bumping. Depending on the quality of the binoculars they may be worth repairing, you can usually get a pair of binoculars “cleaned and columnated” for around $35, (or free if they have a “no fault” warranty”). I would be happy to take a look and advise you on your repair options. Every now and then I see a real gem of a binocular that can be restored to like new condition for under $50.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

Choosing the Right Spotting Scope

Q. I have a good pair of binoculars, as does my wife, now we’re shopping for a scope that we plan to share. There are so many options and a wide range of prices. Do you have any advice?

A. I think sharing is a good idea, there’s really no need to carry two scopes. There are quite a few things to consider when choosing a spotting scope, price is usually the main factor. If you are using a scope for birding you can get by with a cheaper scope, but you are still looking at between $300 and $700. If you think you want to use the scope as a telephoto lens and want printable quality photos, it will be more like $2000 to $3000. For general birding I think most people would agree that it’s wise to have high quality binoculars and a reasonable scope, as people use binoculars much more than their scope.

Besides price the next feature you’ll want to think about is angled eye piece verses straight. If the people using the scope are all the same height, I would recommend a straight scope. You can stand straight so it’s easier on the neck and back. It’s also a lot easier to sight along the scope and find the subject. If you and your wife aren’t the same height, an angled eye piece is probably a better idea, once the scope is set on a bird, you both can look without lowering the tripod and having to relocate the bird. Since you can keep the scope lower, you can use a smaller, lighter and cheaper tripod. With a straight scope, especially if you are 6 feet plus, you will need a bigger tripod, you can’t just rely on the center column to get it up to eye level. The more you have to extend the center column the more the scope will shake, photographers often remove the center column altogether and mounts the camera directly on top of the legs to cut down on camera shake. Also, if you don’t have a wide stance on the legs the whole thing is likely to blow over at that height. I’ve seen $1500 dollar scopes perched on top of $75 dollar tripods, I’ve seen those same scopes in a box in several pieces when I send them out for expensive repairs.

For myself I would get a straight scope, but since I’m often with a group of people I have an angled, it took a while but I’m getting used to it. It’s very rewarding to share sightings with others and an angled scope makes it easy.

Size is the next thing to consider. Scopes are usually 60 mm to 80 mm, that is the objective lens, (the big one at the far end,) is 60-80 millimeters in diameter. If everything else stays constant, the bigger the scope the more expensive it is, but it’s not a huge price difference. The reason for getting a small scope is usually size and weight related. The bigger the object lens, the more light gets through, but a high end 60 mm is likely to be brighter than a low end 80 mm.

Magnification is the next thing to consider, although for most it’s the first thing,

many poor buying decisions are based entirely on power. The power of a scope is decided by the eye piece and is a number or range of numbers followed by an “X”. Typically you see 15-45x60 (you say, “15 to 45 by 60”, remember that, it makes you look smarter when talking to the sales person), the magnification zooms from 15 to 45 power and the objective lens is 60 millimeters. Most, if not all, scopes now come with zoom eye pieces, and the once common 15-45x has been replaced with a 20-60x, because people think they want more power. Unfortunately, it takes a pretty high end scope to have a clear image at 60x and they are standard equipment on low end scopes as well. The other down fall with the 20-60x is the decreased field of view at low power. When trying to locate a bird it’s best to start at lowest power so you have a wider field for spotting, then center the subject and zoom in; the 15 power gave a nice wide field. There are a few scopes that offer an optional fixed, wide angle eye piece, usually 22x WA or, my all time favourite, 30x WA. Unfortunately you usually have to buy these in addition to the zoom that comes standard. The 30x WA gives the same field of view at 30 power as the zoom does at 15 power and it’s brighter and sharper than the zoom at 30 x. It’s an option to think about down the road, after you absorb the cost of scope and tripod.

ED glass or not ED glass? Extra-low dispersion glass stops the light from refracting when it passes through the lens, it means you’ll get a brighter sharper image. The rule of thumb seems to be, if you want to take pictures with the scope it’s worth the extra expense, if you won’t be using your scope for photography it may not be justified. ED glass will usually increase quality by about 10% while adding about $500-$700 to the cost.

I haven’t done much digiscoping myself, but last week when I had the scope set up for the picture in the column, I held my digital camera up to the eyepiece and got a reasonable picture. Nothing I would print, but it absolutely is identifiable, and considering it’s only my second attempt, I did it in a rush and only used my fist to hold the camera to the scope, the results are quite promising. It’s easier with the specific tube and camera adaptor and you would get better pictures. I put a series of photos on our website, thebirdgarden.ca to show the various powers.

Other things to consider are: waterproofing, I think most are waterproof/fogproof now but double check. Compare warranties and read the fine print, I’m liking the “no fault’ warrantee with some companies, it’s a lot less stress and I don’t have to hover over customers as they try out the expensive models, (the warrantee covers shopkeepers as well).

Good luck shopping and if you find one scope that meets all your needs for not too much money please let me know. It’s tough to sort through all the models and options.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden

FAQ- the Rapid Fire Round

Here’s a few questions that I’ve answered on individual basis, the answers were short so I saved them up to make a full column.

Q. Will a plastic owl keep pigeons away from my bird feeder?

A. No, if you don’t believe me go to Cafe Cognito on Main Street, order a coffee and get a window table. Before your coffee cools you’ll likely see a line of Pigeons cuddled up on the leeward side of the motion-activated, solar powered, Robo-Owls that line the ledges of the building across the street.

Q. Do finch eat millet?

A. No.

Q. If finch don’t eat millet how come both red and white millet are in my finch mix?

A. Because they are a cheap filler. The finch will drop them on the ground to get at the nyjer seed that they do like. If you don’t believe me, try filling your feeder with just millet and watch the finch flock off to your neighbours. You can buy straight nyjer for almost the same price and you’ll get more finch, have less mess and no Pigeon problems under the feeder. If you don’t mind the mix because the Sparrows and Mourning Doves eat under the feeders, remember that millet alone cost about 75% less than that “Finch Mix”, and you can feed it where the won’t get pooped on from above.

Q. How can I stop the ants from going into my Hummingbird feeders?

A. Make or buy ant moats that create a barrier of water between the hanger and the feeder, as long as there’s some water in the moat, ants won’t get to the feeder. When you eventually replace your feeders, buy the ones with the ant moats built right in.

Q. I was told I could put (choose one) liquid soap, vegetable oil, kerosene, in my ant moat to keep the water from evaporating so fast, do you recommend this?

A. No. You don’t need it, as long as the water is in the moat most of the time, the ants won’t find it. The problem with additives, if it rains a lot, the moat overflows and drips on the feeder. At best the additives make a mess, at worse they cause harm to the birds.

Q. What’s the best tide to see the Sandpiper and Plover on the Bay of Fundy? I always get conflicting information.

A. Three hours before and three hours after high tide. On low tide the birds are all over the bay eating the mud shrimp. The ones you do see will be too far away and the heat shimmers coming off the mud will make viewing impossible. On high tide they congregate at various roosts to await the next low tide.

Q. I hear reports of flocks of 5000, 10,000 and even more Sandpiper on the Bay, how can you possibly count that many birds?

A. You count all the legs and divide by 2. (Thanks Mary, for that tip)

Q. Do you recommend zoom binoculars?

A. No, they are never as good as fixed power binoculars. The field of view is so narrow, even on low power it’s hard to locate birds and impossible to track them in flight. After some time the two sides start “zooming” at different rates, so objects look closer in one eye than they do in the other. I don’t know if it’s possible to make a good pair of zooms, but all the ones available now are very low end, but the price tags don’t necessarily reflect that. I’m proud to say, I’ve never sold a pair. I lost a few sales, but a couple years down the road they were back for a good pair.

Q. I have some bird houses with 1 ½ holes, I’m trying to attract Chickadees but my neighbour says that is too big. Should I replace them?

A. I wouldn’t, although a Chickadee will use a smaller hole, I make all my houses with 1 ½ inch hole so if an Eastern Bluebird happens along he or she will be able to fit in. As long as you don’t go over 1 ½ you won’t get Starlings, that’s the most important. I’ve had Chickadee nests (in 1 12 inch holes) almost every year and many others I speak to have as well.

Q. I had a different bird in my yard today, I ran for the camera but when I got back it was gone. I didn’t get a very good look. What should I do if it returns?

A. If the bird returns, sit quietly and watch, preferably with binoculars and try to note as much information as possible: Note size, in comparison to other birds, if it’s alone you probably still have a handle on how big a Chickadee, Starling or Blue Jay look on the same feeder or at the same distance. Note colour along with any markings, eye rings, eye lines, breast colour/markings, wing bars and/or tail markings. The beak shape tells you a lot, is it fine like an insect eater, longish like a woodpecker or heavy like a seed eater? Maybe most important, who is it hanging out with and what are they eating?

After you note all you can, go ahead and get a picture, but I think you miss out if you go for the camera first and loose track of the bird.

Q. I paid a lot of money for a squirrel proof feeder, but the squirrel just goes right through the wire, he seems to prefer this feeder to all the others. What am I doing wrong?

A. I guess the big mistake was not reading the fine print. The caged feeders (and some of the weight-activated squirrel proof feeders) only work on Gray Squirrels, it probably says so on the packing, somewhere, but you may need the aid of a small microscope to read it. You’re right too, I find the red squirrels feel quite safe and at home inside these cages. If you were mislead when you purchased the feeder you should return it to the store. If you were to squirrel proof it (no kidding), they do make good small bird selective feeders.

Q. My Hummingbirds fight over the feeder constantly, so I bought a bigger feeder with more ports so they could all have a place to eat. They still fight, what should I do?

A. Ruby-throated hummingbirds are extremely territorial, they usually won’t tolerate another bird on the feeder at the same time no matter how many ports in your feeder. Instead of one big feeder, try several small ones. Spread them out so they aren’t all able to be seen and guarded by one dominant bird. I put one on all sides of the house, then if the bossy one goes behind the house, others are able to feed at the front. You won’t want big feeders for this, you’ll end up dumping too much nectar.

written by Dwayne Biggar at The Bird Garden