Category Archives: bird feeding

Safe Journey-Redpolls

One of the blessings of this Covid-winter has been the antics of a large flock of Common Redpolls who have been daily visitors for the last couple of months. When I take to feeders out every morning about daybreak, they … Continue reading

Posted in bird feeding, Irruptive migrant, migration, Vermont Birding | 1 Comment

Carolina Wren

One of our reliable backyard birds is a Carolina Wren (or two) which is an unusual winter visitor. Here’s the range map which with global warming, is likely changing. We’ll keep the seeds and suet coming and enjoy this bouncy … Continue reading

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Feeder Birds

On these cold wet Vermont days, it’s nice to have a coterie of birds coming to our backyard. Northern Cardinals, even wet ones, add a splash of color and the Chickadees and Goldfinches add their energy to otherwise drab days. … Continue reading

Posted in Backyard birds, bird feeding, FeederWatch, Local Birding, Winter Birds | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Snowy Straggler

The other morning, through the falling snow I noticed a bird different from the normal crew of chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers etc. Getting out the binoculars, I was surprised to see this male Red-winged Blackbird pecking away at the suet. I … Continue reading

Posted in Backyard birds, bird feeding, Local Birding, migration | 2 Comments

Two New Bird Cams to Get You Ready for FeederWatch

A heaping helping of Evening Grosbeaks from the FeederWatch Cam in Ontario. Project FeederWatch starts its new season this Saturday, November 9. To get ready, check out our two new live-streaming Bird Cams—set up at feeders in Manitouwadge, Ontario, and right … Continue reading

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Project Feederwatch Launches New Web Tools

The next season for the Project FeederWatch Citizen Science program begins in just one week! Share your observations about the birds coming to your feeders between November and April, and help reveal important patterns in bird numbers and distribution over … Continue reading

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Baby Monitors for the Birds

Buttoning up windows for winter is great for energy conservation but no longer can you hear the “toot” on the Red-breasted Nuthatch or the chatter of Common Redpolls.  Rich Guthrie, who write a great birding blog, discovered a simple solution to … Continue reading

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Does Your Bird seed Get Eaten or Stored?

All fall, we have watched birds flock to our sunflower seed feeder, our thistle feeder, and our suet containers.  As I wrote last month, our feed store folks love us — we are going through a lot of bird food. … Continue reading

Posted in Bird Behavior, bird feeding, Birds, Winter Birds | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Supply-side Economics of Bird Feeding

Ever watch a Black-capped Chickadee or White-breasted Nuthatch pick away at the feeder, discarding stuff left and right until a sunflower seed pops up? I have a deck littered with millet and other rejected seeds as Nuthatches, Chickadees, and finches … Continue reading

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Smart Birds Stash Stores, Thwart Thieves

We know that squirrels make the most of fall’s plenty by hoarding nuts for the winter, but the fact that birds also store, or cache, food goes largely unappreciated. Through clever observation and experiments, biologists have found that food caching … Continue reading

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