Backyard Wildlife Habitat

Backyard Wildlife Habitat Journal

Come on in and pull up a lawn chair. While I get us something to refresh ourselves, you might want to grab the binoculars and watch the birds. If you sit really still, they'll even come to the bird bath with you out here. Here I have a list of the birds I have seen in my yard so far. There are not all that many different kinds but considering there was nothing before we moved in, I think we've done pretty well. There had been a big dog and a pot bellied pig here before and there was no vegetation left except for four evergreens, two on each corner against the back fence. We have three blooming lilac bushes, first time since we planted and I have a semi shade garden along the east facing back wall of the house so we are getting there. The birds sometimes scare Rusty Rabbit and he heads for the door but all in all, it's pretty serene in my backyard. We have a bird bath on a stand for them which they use often in the heat of the summer especially. We have another tray of water for the squirrels to drink from on a stump under a couple of firs trees.

The entries are presented from newest to oldest. If you wish to read them chronologically, then simply start at the bottom and move up.

Friday - July 29, 2007

This has been a strange year for birding so far. We had at least 23 different species of birds come to our yard by early summer, that's as many as we had the whole year last year. Then we started seeing a few dead birds. One was a Stellar's Jay but we think that one flew into a car by where it was and it had no signs of attack. Then we had a female House Finch in the yard as well as two or three Pine Siskins, and a couple Gold Finches. Later we find out about the problem with Salmonella poisoning happening with Finches, Siskins and Grosbeaks. We didn't see any Grosbeaks but the couple dozen we used to get of Evening Grosbeaks sort of disappeared. I doubt they all dies and there is another explanation for their disappearance. We still have Black headed Grosbeaks and haven't seen any bodies. We proceeded as recommended and thoroughly cleaned everything with bleach and removed all the seed on the ground and started over. We have cleaned them again a few times but not the everyday they recommended. If we had seen more dead birds we would have removed the feeders all together but it seems to have taken care of it.

This year has been a ball for squirrels. I have thoroughly enjoyed them. Dean decided to see if we could get one to come in the house, we did but he made the mistake of leaving the tray of peanuts on the floor in front of the screen door. One couldn't figure out why he couldn't get to them so he proceeded to chew a small hole in the screen. He didn't get it big enough to get in before something scared it away. So we put a fan in front of the screen and don't do the tray on the floor anymore. Since then, we have had no more trouble. The one I call Dale because she looks like the chipmunk, Dale will still come in if you leave the door open to see if anyone is going to feed her but that is all. They like to crawl up the bird feeder pole which is not a problem because they can't reach the feeders or knock them down but once in a great while and they don't bother often. The one that does try, usually ends up slipping face first down the pole and missing the feeder altogether. One didn't hear Dean coming yesterday and was having trouble slipping backwards down the pole in the rain. When he finally saw Dean, he acted like a kid with his hand in the cookie jar, Who Me??? They are so funny. They have our yard filled with peanuts and are now working on the neighbor's yard. I read in a garden book the other night that raw peanuts are not as good for the squirrels as roasted unsalted are so I guess we will start getting them instead. Something about an enzyme I think that isn't as good for them raw but raw is how they would get them in nature. They would dig them up out of the ground. Good question to research maybe.

Monday - March 27, 2007

Well, Another year has come and it's time to observe the returning birds and the ones that remained prepare for another round of young. The Gold Finches migrated it would seem but I didn't realize they did. One year I remember them being here while it was still snowing but I may just have my memories messed up. Although I would have thought they would be back by now and I haven't seen a single gold finch in the yard.
We had hundreds of birds visit our yard during the winter and have have pictures of some of them. The biggest surprise I got was from a hawk which came in the early winter. He landed on the fence between the birdhouse and the pole the squirrel feeder is attached to. There was not a thing moving while he sat there. It must have looked like a banquet from above the yard to bring him down here. I was sitting near the door when I saw him but didn't have my glasses close by. He was such a majestic thing. He might have been a Merlin or maybe a Cooper's Hawk but I am inclined to say a Merlin Hawk. He wasn't here long enough to get a really good look at him and no way to get a picture. I would really love to get a camera that is field glasses but takes shots of what you see. That is if they work. I'd really love to have a really good camera but that is out of the question for now.
The hummingbirds are back. They aren't supposed to migrate from here but we have never seen one here in the winter. They stop visiting the feeders before fall is starting to get cold. I really need to do some more research on migration before I can say I know what I am talking about. It really bothers me thought that the gold finches are gone. We have upwards to 20 to 30 at a time then suddenly, only one or two, then none at all. My Birds of the Puget Sound book says they are often hard to find in the winter here. I wonder if they migrate the same every year or there are some years they don't.

Monday - September 11, 2006

We have gotten several pictures taken of the wild life and garden and I have them posted at WebShots. Follow the links under the the link to this journal. We have been trying to get a good pictures of the Steller's Jays but they are so skittish and illusive. If they even think they hear a sound they are gone and always seem to come to the squirrel feeder and birdbath when the shade is covering the area. I have one picture I had to apply a lightening filter to it three times so you could see there was a bird on the bird bath and a squirrel on the ground. It really ruined the quality of the pix but at least you can see what it is. The shadow cast in the back yard in the afternoon comes out so dark it looks like the backside of the moon in contrast to the light side of the moon. The only birds it seems are coming regularly to the feeder now are House Finches, Gold Finches, Chickadees, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Juncos Steller's Jays and Crows. The Chickadees and Juncos were not much of a presence during mating season but they are here enforce and have brought their new young with them. It's fun watching the young finches get their adult plumage. Some times you aren't too sure which birds you are looking at. We have 3 long sunflower seed feeders, one has 3 holes and the other 2 have 6 holes each and the birds can empty that in 24 hours. I think we are feeding the whole neighborhood. It's well worth it though. I love setting here in my sewing & computer room where I can watch the birder bath and the feeders. It sure is good for one's well being to be so surrounded by wild lfie and flowers.

Saturday - September 2, 2006

Thursday we had been out in the front yard working and when we came into the house we discovered three black birds on the feeders with another one or two on the fence. We weren't sure just exactly what they were so I grabbed my binoculars and focused in. Just about the time I got a steady bead on them they flew away but while on the wing and still in view, I saw read and yellow stripes on the wings. It's the first time we have seen them in the yard but they haven't come back as of yet. We have never seen another Western Tanager in the yard again either. We used to get them back home a lot, the blackbirds that is but this is the first time we've seen them here. So... that brings this years total of bird species seen in our yard to 19. That is so cool in my opinion.

Wednesday - August 30, 2006

Our backyard is beginning to look like a parking lot for birds and I couldn't any happier unless a Cardinal came by for a look-see. We had four or five Red-winged Blackbirds came to the feeders yesterday too. I was outside just before that and stopped my power chair about 5 feet from the birdbath and watched them while I was sitting there eating the cherry tomatoes I had just picked. Suddenly the birds came back to the feeders and the ground and 2 Chickadees flew to the birdbath and got drinks. Then one of them jumped in and took a bath, Of course I didn't have the camera with me. The shots we loose due to forgetfulness. Hopefully I can get another chance.

Tuesday - August 22, 2006

The yard continues to dry up, just the lawn of course. Here in Western Washington, most people let the lawns go dormant in the summer months since it takes so much water to keep it green. The grass is used to lots of rain and when it stops raining the lawn dies back but turns green again as soon as the rains start, usually September, maybe October. I hate it but water in our neighborhood is so expense that it just doesn't make sense to waste so much of it on lawns. =-( We try to keep a small area around the backdoor and the patio table green but this year it has been a dryer, hotter summer so it's gotten pretty bad and my DH has been sick a lot this year and just hasn't been doing as much. We did get a circle around the bird bath made from junk dug, edged and planted though. I decided to use Morning Glories but they still haven't bloomed. We have 2 varieties, both a climber and a bush and no blooms. It seems like such a long time. At least the pedestal is just an old metal table with the top cut to 18" and the legs from something else. We placed an 18" ceramic pot tray on it. Makes a great bird bath and with the vines crawling all over the thing and the round bed too, it's so neat. The birds are just flocking in her to bath and get a drink. What I saw the other day just totally surprised me. IF i hadn't seen it happen more than once I would have said it was a coincidence. I saw a yellow jacket land on the edge of the bowl and crawl down to the water's edge for a drink. Now, mind you, I've seen that time after time, no big deal, but... I saw the bug fly around a few times when the birds were there too and they'd fly away. I thought nothing off it but then I observed it happening over and over. I soon came to realize that said yellow jacket was chasing the bird away. He fly at them to intimidate them so they'd leave. It was so amazing the the little bug would actually be able to bully the birds. The Chickadees seemed to be the most wary but the Finches seemed to say, "Go chase yourself Bug!" and stayed longer. We have the camera working now and the card reader is finally working so we have taken a few pictures of my birdies. I really want to get a picture of the Stellar's Jays in the bird bath. That one is going to be tough to get again. But hopefully...

Tuesday - August 8, 2006

We had a horrendous bout with high heat here two weeks ago and actually got up to 101˚ and stayed in the high 90s for two more days and was still really warm for a couple more after that. Now you might say, "So What?". You have to realize that Seattle's high is 99˚, period. And, it hasn't been hot 3 days in a row for I think they said, 30 years. So that kind of heat here is a really BIG deal. They kept telling us it was going to cool off and it just didn't. I know the rest of the country was suffering too but you all are a whole lot more used to it than we are. The most frequented place in this neighborhood was my two bird baths. We refreshed the water at least twice a day. We had birds that don't come all the time come in. Birds and squirrels everywhere. I just discovered that I had talked about this in my last entry but it was during the time, not after. LOL I guess it would behoove me to read the last entries before I start spouting off each time. I haven't been out much since it got hot but I can observe them all from my sewing room now or even sitting here at the computer, all I need to do is turn my head and I can see the bird bath. I can get the best of all my worlds, sitting right here.

I was really enjoying the view the other day when I looked out and saw quite a few birds feeding on the feeders, one or two white-crowned sparrows on the ground along with one squirrel and one rabbit, all at the same time. Ain't harmony grand??? Sure be nice if that would translate to other species of animal and man too. The birds react to Rusty when he first goes out, they probably think he's a cat. The squirrels get their guards up too but it doesn't take them long to figure it out, then they are just one big happy family.

Saturday - July 22, 2006
Our habitat is a popular place right now. I was watching the early morning bathing going on and I am sure it's in large part due to the weather in Western Washington this weekend. Friday alone we had a record breaking temperature of 101˚ here and 97˚ today. We don't have air conditioning so it's too hot here to do much more than watch the birds. I kept finding myself nodding off all day because it was too hot to sleep last night. It will be hot tonight and tomorrow all day before the temperature starts to creep down toward our normal temps for this time of year. The birds are trying to eat us out of house and home. They go through at least two full feeders in a couple days or so. Now, mind you, that is feeder birds and ground feeders, plus 3 squirrels and a rabbit ground feeding. Rusty found the seeds the birds drop out and the squirrels found it a long time ago. They never try to go up the pole anymore, it's too much work when all they need to do is stand under the sloppy birds.

We are still getting some young fledglings to the feeders and bird baths. I can't get over their fluffiness. It's so cute. I have lost track of how many families we've had here in our small backyard. I hope the rest of the neighborhood haven't been bothered by the racket they sometimes make. Especially the bigger birds. Our neighbors to the side of us don't have anything planted in their backyard to speak of but they are always getting crows in the yard. I don't know if they go there to eat what they've found elsewhere knowing they won't be bothered or they are finding something there I can't see. Either way, they have them a lot. When they show up in our yard, the smaller birds make a beeline for the trees to let the bullies have the space. I think the only thing that doesn't worry too much about them are the Hummers. We haven't seen much of the Hummers for the last week, not sure where they have gotten off to. I guess they are probably getting plenty of food from flowers right now and don't need the feeders. I've heard that if you keep the feeders out in the winter, that you will get visitors. I know the Annas Hummers are supposed to stay here all year. I've never seen one but we've never left the feeders out and filled up with fresh food all year either.

Friday - July 14, 2006
We have been very fortunate this summer since we have so many birds now. Several of the birds coming to the feeder and bird baths have hatched out broods either in our yard or very near it. So far we have observed chicks from White Crowned Sparrows, House Sparrows, Black-Headed Grosbeaks for sure and maybe one or two others. By the time they come to the feeders they are flying and close to the same size as the adults or close it it. Some have been "fluffier" with their down and others are slightly different colored or missing distinctive markings. The main thing we observed from all of the ones we are sure about is that the young will stand in front of the parent begging for begging for food as we've all seen in pictures but not only are they crouching a bit with mouth open and crying for food but they also flutter their wings rapidly getting closer and closer if the parent ignores them. They follow them everywhere, on top the fence, on the feeder, on the ground. I didn't realize that birds can move on the ground as fast as they do. Some remind me if the Road Runner of cartoon fame. :o) The Grosbeaks kept coming while I wasn't up until this week. I saw the female last week but the male finally showed up. He is huge compared to the other birds at the feeders and he does eat from the droppings below also as do most of the others. I was beginning to think my husband was lying to me or at least, delusional.

Friday - July 7, 2006
The thistle feeder this year isn't the hot eatery so we moved it to under the eves away from the feeder stand and added another sunflower feeder to alleviate the lines of "customers". It has helped but they still act like kindergarteners and fight a lot. We have a decorative birdhouse we put out in the summer hanging on it too and a pot of Calibracoa (Millions Bells) on a long hangers and a Wren decided to build a nest in it and they are pretty territorial and sing a lot if another bird gets near. We had a lot of singing for just over a week. His female must not have liked it because no one ever came back. They have several mates it seems and builds several nests and the female uses the one she likes best. He made trip after trip into the house and with rather thick sticks for a bitty bird and some didn't want to bend to go inside so he would take trip after trip up to the hole to get in. Sometimes he would go out over the roof and back around to the other side and only rarely did he give up on a sick unless he dropped it. A couple of time he took the stick over to our patio table and left them there for further consideration. We have an umbrella up and he would sit up there singing at the feeder traffic trying to tell them to get lost. =o) Now that he is gone and not using the house I miss his songs. They were very melodious and beautiful to listen to.

Wednesday - June, 7, 2006
Last year we added a Japanese Willow to the yard. It isn't for the birds necessarily, more for the serenity but it sure is beautiful. I am a devotee of using odds and ends in my garden or better know as garden junk. Last year my daughter had a white topped pedestal table that was broken and we decided to take the cross members, the base and make a stand to hang plants, bird feeders and/or birdhouses from. It is on a tall pole and right now has a birdhouse, a sunflower feeder, a thistle feeder and a hanging plant. Mr. Squirrel decided that the feed we put out for him in an old mailbox attached to the fence didn't have as good of food as the birds have. So he climbed up my Clematis that is on a pole, in a pot, close to the bird feeders. He jumped from Clematis to the hanging pot, up the cords to the top of the pole, then down the wire I guess to the sunflower feeder. My husband spotted him before he could do much damage and chased him off. He did bend down some of the Clematis vines but didn't break them. He pulled the out away from the reach of the pole and he hasn't seemed to try it again. He has a regular squirrel mix and he goes into the box, grabs some food then comes out and sits on the open door. It's fixed so it can close but it isn't able to crop and further than a right angle to the box so they can use it like a deck.