Backyard Bird News

Why Feed The Birds When They Could Forage On Their Own?

2011-05-24T15:19:00.000-07:00

It's nice out, the grass is green, there are tasty mosquitos and other insects about, plants are starting to bloom and trees are leafing out. It seems tempting when the weather is so nice to assume that birds can forage for food on their own and let the bird feeders run empty. However, there are some good reasons to continue to feed the birds even in ideal foraging conditions:

Loyalty: Just as like a company that worries about their customers not coming back after they start to buy a competitor's product, you need to know that if you lose your birds to a competitor's bird feeder (your neighbor's for example) or to another area where wild seed is in better supply, it means that they may not be back to your feeder in the future. To ensure you have birds in your yard year round, you need to feed your birds all year round.

Food timing and migration: In the spring many birds are recovering from their big spring migration. A readily available food supply makes this recovery easier and increases the likelihood of survival for those birds who have depleted much of their energy resources to make the exhausting journey to their summer homes. Similarly, in the fall, birds are preparing for their fall migration and the better their food supply, the better prepared they will be to make that big trip.

Nesting nutritional requirements: Birds that have returned to Canada for the summer are here to nest and raise their young. By feeding the birds, you are helping the bird parents more easily forage for bird seed and therefore do a better job of raising their young. It also means that you may see some of these youngsters at your feeder as soon as they are able.

Enjoy the variety of birds available in the summer time: Many birds migrate here for summer and you can see totally different birds at your feeder in the summer than in the winter. You don't want to miss out on these new birds that you can only see by feeding the birds in the summer.

For the pleasure of it: I enjoy sitting in my backyard, soaking up the warm sunshine and watching the birds come and go to the feeder. Call me a "fair weather birder" but I am quite unlikely to be cooling my jets on the deck in January or February. There is something about sharing nature with the birds that is good for the soul. So logically, then, feeding the birds in the summer must be good for the soul.

It's Not All About Taste for Hummingbirds

2011-04-23T12:39:00.000-07:00

A new study reveals that hummingbirds give their bodies time to decide whether or not the nectar meal they just had is sufficient enough or if they need to ingest more. So, in essence hummingbirds are intelligent enough to watch their weight!

Dr. Sue Healy from the University of St Andrews led the study, which was published in Behavioral Ecology. Dr. Healy, along with the other scientists were amazed by this new information. They have always known that hummingbirds can detect how much or how little nectar is in the flowers or feeders they feed from, however, they had no idea they had such intelligence to control their eating habits.

Healy and her group experimented with the Rufous species and marked feeders with various nectar concentrations. Most flowers have anywhere between 7% up to 60% of sugar concentration. Hummingbirds typically prefer a sweeter, sugar solution to natural food, most likely because of consistency.

The study began by feeding the hummingbirds a 14% mixture, and then changed up to a 25% solution. The scientists expected the hummingbirds to drink more nectar once the sugar percentage was increased, but they did not. They ingested the same amount as they did with the 14% solution. They discovered the same results when starting with a higher percentage of sugar and going down to a lower percentage.

Every 10-15 minutes a hummingbird has a meal, but because their bodies are so efficient, they digest the nectar very quickly so they don’t have to wait long to decide how much they need to eat for their next meal.

As a conclusion, the authors in the study wrote that hummingbirds use three natural instincts when feeding. Taste is used to decipher any changes, to compare past and present they utilize their memory, and physiological post-ingestive feedback over many feeding experiences in order to intelligently decide how much to eat.

So, although hummingbirds have quite a sweet tooth, it’s not enough when deciding how much or how little to eat!

Establishing a Mason Bee Colony

2011-02-21T10:10:00.000-08:00

Want to increase the success rate of your mason bee colony?
Replace your cardboard straws (which are good for one season) with a nesting tray system made from re-useable poly-lumber material. Manufactured by local company Bee Diverse, this nesting tray system (illustrated on the right below), enables you to clean mites from bee cocoons to increase the colony health.

It is fairly easy to learn to “manage” your mason bee colony. All you have to do is switch to nesting trays that can be opened up for access to the bee cocoons, and then wash the cocoons once a year.

Fall/Winter Cleaning: Between October and December mason bees will not emerge from their cocoons, even when very warm. Remove cocoons from each nesting tray cell and float them in a bowl of tepid water. Move them around gently and debris sinks to the bottom. Rinse cocoons in a sieve until the water runs clean. Place them on a paper towel to inspect them for little orange spots, a sign of mites. Re-wash cocoons until you see very few orange spots. Air dry them on a paper towel for at least an hour.
And while you’re washing your cocoons, it’s best to scrub your nesting trays with warm water and air dry them as well.
Store Cleaned Cocoons: Keep clean, dry mason bee cocoons in a cardboard box inside of a metal container. Layer them between paper towels for cushioning. Punch some holes in the metal container for air circulation. By early March place cocoons outside in the “attic” of a bee house or in a container with a small hole from which bees can emerge.

Bird Housing Top Ten List plus 1

2011-02-16T14:57:00.000-08:00

1) Decide which species you wish to attract and select a house designed for that species. Nest box dimensions for wall height, floor size, and especially hole size are important.

2) Starlings are capable of entering any nest box that has a 1-½“ hole or larger. House Sparrows, which also prey on nesting songbirds, can squeeze into 1-¼”. Keeping your hole size at 1-1/8” or diamond-shaped at 1”x3” will help deter these undesirable and invasive species.

3) Cedar is the best material for nest boxes due to its resistance to weather and insects.

4) Avoid nest boxes with perches. The birds we host don’t need them, and they help predators such as starlings and crows get into the box.

5) Look for ventilation holes or gaps at the top of the box.

6) Look for drainage holes in the bottom so that rain doesn’t collect in the box.

7) Your nesting box should open up on one side for monitoring and cleaning.

8) Mount the nest box on a tree or post between 6 and 20 feet from the ground. Hanging bird houses are not as attractive to birds as stationary ones.

9) Use a metal portal cover over the entrance to the nest box to protect the hole from being enlarged by predators.

10) Clean out the nest box at the end of each nesting season. Disinfect it using a very small amount of bleach and rinse thoroughly.
11) Hang some nesting material nearby your bird house. This can consist of moss, cat or dog hair, dryer lint, short pieces of dried grass etc.