Our Winter Birds

During the months of November to March is the time to fill your bird feeders for our winter feathered friends. When the ground is covered with snow many have a hard time keeping alive. There are many varieties of birds seed on the markets. However, we believe the best all around food is the sunflower.

We have found a little gimmick that keeps the lowly sparrow from emptying the feeder by his constant scratching. Place a strip of 'inch open' mesh over the bottom of the feeder. This will permit the birds to get their heads in for their food and prevent the seeds from being thrown out on the ground.

It will be interesting to watch the various birds that come to your feeder. The most colorful will be the cardinal. If you will observe closely, the male will dominate the feeders. Only after the male has had his fill can the female come and get her share. The cardinal is one of our residents who spend the entire year with us. His cheery whistle in the spring can be distinguished from all other birds.

One of our newcomers to this community is the evening grosbeak. This bird is a native to the deep woods of Canada. We see them here in flocks of six to sixty. When they come to the feeder they make more chattering noises than any other bird. One male will stay on the feeder. Rather than share the seeds with the others he will constantly fight all comers. When the fighter does leave, another will replace him and the process is repeated. The grosbeak will remain with us until April when they return to the fir and spruce forests of the North.

The next of the permanent residents is the starling. Originally he was an Old County inhabitant. He was first introduced into New York's Central Park in 1890. In the past eighty years he has spread to all 48 states. This bird has its good qualities as well as the bad.

Perhaps many have noted the absence of the 'red-headed woodpeckers' that years ago used to fly from telephone pole to pole and tree to tree. The aggressiveness of the starling against the native-hole nesting species has caused a drastic loss in the bird world, particularly our bluebirds, flickers and the woodpecker families. The Starling is not a seed eating bird. Its bill is not adapted for this purpose. In the summer it causes untold damage to apple, pear and cherry crops, also corn in the husk as well as other garden produce.

To its credit side, this bird feeds extensively upon insects. One cannot help but notice how they will converge upon our yards and fields seeking grasshoppers and various grubs. It is one of our best destroyers of the Japanese beetle in its grub stage.

In the fall it gathers in large flocks and when they select a roosting spot a serious problem exists, especially if the spot happens to be in trees lining our sidewalks. In the winter if will feed greedily on suet that has been placed for the downy woodpeckers.

Another unusual fact about the starling is its ability to imitate other birds.

Our next permanent resident is one which we all know. We know it as the English Sparrow. It too, is an European import. Its correct name should be Weaver Finch. Over the years this little bird was the target for hundreds of 'BB's' as well as the '22 caliber rifle. It was first imported in 1850 when eight pairs were released in Brooklyn. Since that time it has spread all over the USA and Canada.

A flock of sparrows can empty a feeder of seeds in a short time by his constant scratching similar to a chicken. We find this bird in the spring will build its nest in the eaves of buildings, holes in trees, cracks in walls and birdhouses that were built for other varieties.

Another visitor to our feeders is the slate-colored junko. He is sometimes called the black snowbird. This little bird comes to us from the spruce forest of Maine and Canada. They leave about the same time as the grosbeaks. They are exclusively seedeaters. They can be found along roadsides and fields where weed seeds are plentiful. Once they locate our feeders they become a regular feeder or visitor.

People who live in rural areas or adjacent to wooded areas get a special treat from the blue jays, several varieties of woodpeckers, nuthatches and other birds that do not care to come into thickly populated areas.

Lets feed the birds and enjoy their company. You'll be glad you did.