Suet fiends

This morning, a male pileated woodpecker came to visit -- and found both suet feeders empty, in spite of our frequent checks on them. I photographed Mr. Big Bird, below, as he gave up and took off.


It's the starlings who throw me off; they're not supposed to be able to use the hanging suet feeders, but some, the big fat smart ones, can do it, and they gobble up the suet as quickly as we put it out. The yard is full of starlings these days, and grackles, and redwing blackbirds, and cowbirds. Only the starlings are considered an invasive species; the others belong in North America and are a natural part of the bird scene here.

The little birds don't seem too bothered by these more aggressive species most of the time. They just wait nearby until the coast is clear, then take their turn at the feeders. The woodpeckers seem to ignore them completely, unless large numbers of starlings gang up on them. Soon the starlings and grackles will move off into the fields in search of grain -- and good riddance!

There was a recall of some kinds of peanut suet due to the Peanut Corporation of America situation--the recall includes Morning Song, available in Walmart and other places. The FDA recall can be read here: http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/scotts03_09.html

Thanks for reading!

A Rare Visitor

Look who dropped by the other day!

This Northern Flicker shows the distinctive black spots on the white breast. The black "moustaches" on the side of the face indicate a male.

The Northern Flicker is one of 7 woodpecker species found in Indiana, and a rare visitor to the back yard. In our area, flickers are yellow-shafted, which means that underwings and tail feathers are yellow, visible from below. This one stayed only a few minutes and was primarily interested in the hanging suet feeders in the walnut tree. This tree is our "woodpecker tree," a favorite of downy, hairy, red-headed, red-bellied, and pileated woodpeckers all winter. The one Indiana species of woodpecker we've never seen is the yellow-bellied sapsucker, a small woodpecker that really does eat sap.

Flickers, like all woodpeckers, eat insects when they're available, and their favorite food is ants. They will forage on the ground or in trees, and will take berries or seeds when they can't get ants. They are monogamous, nest in cavities, and won't be persuaded to use nest boxes. They often migrate a bit south in the winter, but in Indiana they're present all year round.

When I spotted the flicker in our yard, I made a grab for the camera and hung out the window to catch a shot. My photos aren't really very good and don't do justice to this beautiful bird. I hope he'll come back soon so I can try again.

A bird bonanza

Our back yard is full of birds! I am too tired to write much, and besides, the pictures are the most fun. So here is a photo album of visitors to our back yard. Please excuse the awkward placement & uneven sizing.

Female (L) and male (R) Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks. The photo of the female was taken a couple of weeks ago, but they are abundant in the yard.



This weekend we saw 3 Baltimore Orioles (L) and one vibrant Indigo Bunting (R).



Although others in our area have reported seeing Indigo Buntings, we were still a little surprised to see them this early. They usually begin visiting our yard in late May or early June. I love them just for their color. Buntings belong to the finch family and visit the thistle feeders along with Goldfinches.





Of all our back yard birds, I think I love woodpeckers the most. We had downy and hairy woodpeckers over the weekend. After this female Hairy Woodpecker (L) had eaten, she packed her beak with suet and flew away with it. Babies?




The most exciting visitor we saw
recently was the red-headed woodpecker.
It's been a long time since I was able to admire the rich colors of this bird in person. Male and female look alike, so we're not sure which this is. This bird, too, was taking suet away.

By the way, woodpeckers like both plain and flavored suet. But the kind with lots of seeds in it is less useful -- they pick the suet out and leave the seeds. We use plain in one feeder and "Peanut Butter and Jelly," which has peanuts and berries in it, in the other.

That's the back yard bird news. Next time, I'll give a nesting update.

She's back.....

.....but without her mate. The female pileated woodpecker (March 26 post) came back Sunday for a brief visit to one of the suet feeders, but the male wasn't with her. What does this mean? Well, it probably means that they are nesting, but taking turns on the eggs. (In this photo, taken in January, the male is on the right. He has red moustaches along the side of his face, but they're hard to see here.)

My reference book of choice, for all questions relating to woodpeckers, is Woodpeckers of North America, by Frances Backhouse (Firefly, 2005). According to Backhouse, pileated woodpeckers mate for life and stay close together all year long in their permanent territory. When they nest, they excavate a cavity in a mature tree and the female lays about 4 eggs. The parents take turns on the nest; they may trade off several times a day, but the males always stay on the nest at night. Woodpecker chicks hatch in 10-14 days. They're naked, blind and pretty helpless, but they double their weight in 24-48 hours. (No wonder it takes both parents to keep them fed!) Pileated chicks leave the nest in about 27 days. After the nesting season is over, those old holes are still useful--the woodpeckers don't reuse them, but about 38 species of birds and animals do.

I've filled the suet feeder favored by the pileateds with peanut & berry-flavored suet, everybody's favorite. I hope someday they'll bring the kids by for dinner. Until then, I'm studying my book, a gift from my own mate-4-life, and enjoying their visits.

Signs of Spring

I've never written a blog before, though I've kept a journal for years. I thought it might be fun to put together some of the things I've learned, read, wondered about, gotten mad about, or otherwise encountered. In any case, if you're an actual reader, welcome!

I only see my garden on the weekends. We have 8 bird feeders in the yard, and all week I look forward to watching many types of birds come and go. They perch on the feeders, or in the branches of the pine tree, or on the trunk of our walnut tree. They chase each other through the branches and zoom by the kitchen window. It's like watching a game of musical chairs.

This past weekend, I saw the usual assortment of chickadees, titmice, goldfinches, blue jays, cardinals, house finches, and -- best of all -- woodpeckers. But the big news was the absence of the female pileated woodpecker. For weeks, we've been thrilled to see the male and female coming to the suet feeders together. The male goes to the suet first, while the female waits on the tree trunk below, calling and watching. When he moves up the trunk, she takes his place at the feeder. They may stay for as long as 15 minutes. (And I hang out the kitchen window with the camera for as long as they're here.) But this weekend, he came without her. WHERE IS "MRS. BIG BIRD?" To my ever-hopeful mind, there can be just one explanation: maybe she's on the nest! Pileateds are early nesters-- they can nest as early as February. Last year, the 2 parents and 1 fledgling visited our yard in June. So I can't say for sure, but I imagine her keeping eggs warm somewhere deep in the trees. Perhaps "Mr. Big Bird" is feeding her bits of suet gathered from our feeders. Live long and prosper!