winter bird feeding Archives -

Red-headed or Red-bellied Woodpecker

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

In the last few years, I’ve had an increase in the number of customers at Wild Birds Unlimited here in Grosse Pointe Woods who come in and report that they have a Red-headed Woodpecker at their feeders. Knowing the status of that bird is unusual in Michigan, I show them a picture of both Red-headed and Red-bellied woodpeckers.

Red-headed Woodpecker by Andrea Rose

Red-bellied Woodpecker

After seeing both, most people realize they in fact saw a Red-bellied and not a Red-headed Woodpecker. It s far less common to have the latter bird in this area (though certainly not impossible!). In the case of the Red-bellied, it does in fact also have a red cap, which makes the nomenclature slightly confusing. Perhaps at the time of the Red-bellied’s discovery, the name “Red-headed Woodpecker” was already taken. This type of discovery would have been made after the bird was shot to be studied. Luckily, these days, binoculars have replaced guns in the study of birds, and through them we can see the red blush of the Red-bellied woodpeckers’ belly.

More facts …

Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) is 9.25 inches in length, has a wing span of 16 inches and weighs 2.2 oz. With a white belly, distinctive black and white stripes on the back and a bright red cap, this bird is a welcome addition to the sightings in your yard. The red on the male covers both the crown and the nape of the bird, whereas in the female it is restricted to the nape. In flight, the wings move in a deep undulating flight. One of the most interesting facts that I have read about this bird is that it has 36,000 to 37,000 feathers to insulate it. (Just how do they come up with those statistics?) The male Red-bellied Woodpecker has a longer bill and a longer, wider tongue tip than the female. These adaptations may allow the male to reach deeper into furrows to extract prey and may allow the sexes to divide up the resources in one area.

One of the best attributes of the Red-bellied Woodpecker is its voice. As Sibley describes it the “contact call is a loud, harsh, but rich quirrr slightly rising; in flight a single, low chug. Also a harsh chig-chig, a series of chig notes delivered slowly, or a rapid, chuckling series chig chigh-chchchchchchch descending.”
The Red-bellied is a nut eater, frequenting deciduous and mixed woodlands forests and usually ranging south of boreal forests. It eats three times more vegetable matter than insect matter and is known for its propensity to store food, using its long tongue to push food deeper than chickadees, titmice and blue jays can reach. It is known to eat arthropods, seeds, fruit, sap, and occasionally lizards, tree frogs, small fish, nestlings, birds, and eggs. The manner in which it feeds is to glean for insects from bark; probe and excavate into dead wood; hawk for flying insects; and hang upside down for berries.

Red-bellied Woodpecker by Andrea Rose

The Red-bellied Woodpecker is a primary cavity nesting bird, laying white eggs as most cavity nesters do. They don’t re-use cavities, which is important because the nest holes are then used by a large number of other birds, including flycatchers, wood ducks, screech owls, and bluebirds, to name a few. Nesting begins in late April and early May with the young fledging the cavity by June or July. European Starlings have an intense impact on the Red-bellied Woodpeckers’ nesting success, as the aggressive, non-native species runs the woodpeckers out of their cavities.

The range of the Red-bellied is widespread throughout the southeast. The Birds of Michigan by McPeek and Adams classifies the range of this bird as becoming considerably more common in Michigan in recent decades. In the early to mid-1900s, the range of the Red-bellied Woodpecker ended around the middle of the state, but now it occurs throughout the Lower Peninsula, though still uncommon in most of the northern counties. The increase of this bird’s range northward is due to a number of factors. As Red-bellied populations grow in the south, there is a greater need for ranges to expand in order for birds to establish sufficiently sized territories. Increases in people who feed the birds, as well as above average winter temperatures for several decades, and forest regeneration in parts of the Lower Peninsula all add to the increase of this species. The Christmas Bird Counts confirm a steady rise in the population. Sightings of this bird in the winter are more regular as birds wander in search of food. Red-bellieds will cache food in a cavity, stocking it with acorns, nuts or sunflower seeds, which adds to their survival rate.

Since Red-bellied Woodpeckers are not as numerous here as in the southern states, I asked my Wild Birds Unlimited fellow store owners for some advice on what to recommend at feeders in order to bring in these newcomers. The responses were diverse –

“They like everything other woodpeckers like and can drill through whole peanuts in a peanut feeder to get at the nut meat.”

“They eat Black Oil Sunflower out of the tray feeder on the ground all the time”. .

“They love pure sunflower chips best of all, with peanuts second, and suet also”.

“They prefer peanuts, suet and striped Sunflower”.

“Red-bellied woodpeckers like peanuts, striped sunflower, and suet”.

Judging by these responses, a well stocked feeding station should increase the odds that you will be host to the sight and sounds of this handsome woodpecker.

Enjoy your birds.

Rosann

Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Feeding Techniques of our Wild Feeder Birds

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

“Chickadees don’t stay very long at the feeder.”

This is a common observation of our customers that sit and watch the various feeding habits of the birds that visit their yards. Chickadees and Tufted Titmice do flit to the feeder, grab a seed and then disappear into the closest shrub or tree in order to eat. Sometimes, they may stay at the feeder for a few moments, picking up a seed and evaluating its’ weight in order to ensure that the energy they expend will be worth the prize inside. Once a seed is selected, these members of the Paridae family cannot open the seed while sitting on the small perch of a feeder. The seed needs to be held between their feet while the bird uses its’ small beak as a chisel, excavating the outer shell to reach the nut meat inside.

Tufted Titmouse by Andrea Rose

Blue Jays feed in the same manner, as their beak is not built for cracking a seed between the upper and lower mandible. Instead, they place the sunflower seed from your feeder under their feet and use only their lower bill to hit the seed. Blue Jays are equipped with a special flange on the lower jaw that braces it against the skull, creating a more effective chisel.

One of the most famous “chiselers” of the backyard is our Downy Woodpecker. Once he locates insects by hearing them inside of a tree, the Downy’s beak chisels the wood in order to reach the insects inside. At a suet feeder, these tame year-round residents have a more relaxed meal. Using their long tongue with its’ sticky saliva and barbs, the Downy Woodpecker can easily extract pieces of suet from the cake that you offer to them.

Downy Woodpecker by Andrea Rose

On the opposite end of the spectrum, doves and pigeons have a small bill that does not allow them to chisel or crack seeds. Their soft-based bills are more adept at picking seeds from the ground or eating small seeds that they find in your feeders. Once ingested, they store food in their crop where it is ground with the aid of the muscular part of the stomach called the gizzard. This accounts for their frenzied bouts of eating large quantities of food and then later roosting for long periods as the food is processed.

Cardinals, Goldfinches and House Finches have conical shaped beaks that allow them to shell seeds and eat them one after the other. To our benefit, these birds sit at your feeders for longer periods of time, without the need to take seeds away from the feeding station. The action of their bill is the same as a nutcracker in that the grooved upper mandible holds the seed while the lower mandible moves the seed forward and cracks it open, thereby removing the shell.

Some of the birds that frequent your feeding station will take a number of seeds away from the feeder and hide them for consumption at a later time. This technique is known as caching and is used by both the Black-capped Chickadee as well as the Blue Jay. The hippocampus in the brain of these birds is disproportionately larger than in other birds. In studies that have been done in these species, when the hippocampus is removed, the birds are still capable of caching food but can no longer relocate it from memory. Many times, the chickadees will cache food from the feeder into nearby crevices in trees in order to get a quick “full plate”, settling in at that spot to eat all of the cached food away from the feeding station. Blue Jays will cache acorns and other mast from trees into the ground, assuring the continuation of that tree species, as the seeds that are not retrieved become next year’s seedlings.

Watching the eating habits of the wild feeder birds at your feeding station can be an enjoyable and educational experience as you learn about each bird’s particular method of obtaining it’s “daily bread”.

Enjoy your birds!

Rosann

Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

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Tips for a Pest-free, Clean Bird Feeding Station

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

When we get our first blast of cooler air and a cloudy sky, I’m reminded by the heavy influx of customers at our Wild Birds Unlimited in Grosse Pointe Woods that they are getting ready for their fall and winter bird feeding. With that fuel for thought, I’ve come up with some ideas to share with you for pest free and clean feeding stations.

Good, quality seeds are the staple of any feeding station in the colder months. Once natural seeds have been depleted, birds will look to supplement their diet with your offerings. The most favored seed is the black oil sunflower, favored by more birds than any other seed. Using sunflower as the main seed in a blend and adding other favored seeds such as safflower and white proso millet will bring in the local birds as well as the migrants. Birds that perch while they eat prefer the sunflower and safflower, whereas the ground feeding birds prefer the millet that falls to the ground from the feeder. Choosing a quality seed is the most important factor in your feeding station. Seeds that birds don’t prefer will be tossed aside by them, ending up on the ground where they are a great food source for rodents. Check the ingredients and make sure they are what the birds want.

Keeping a tidy feeding station is good for the birds and good for you. Utilize a tray that allows you to catch any seeds that are scattered by the doves and sparrows – we are convinced they are trying to give to their brethren below! Make sure that you provide a way to clean up the area underneath the feeders. Seeds and shells that sit for prolonged periods of time will mold and harbor germs that may affect your birds. The birds themselves will cause droppings to go into the shells and seed spillage. A hardware cloth or screen placed under the feeder will allow you to pull it away, roll up and toss the mess, and wash it off before placing it back under the feeder.

Store seeds in galvanized cans inside of the garage or a shed. Keeping seed in the house may cause cereal moths to hatch, the eggs having been laid in the seed shells while the sunflower was growing in the field. Temperature is what causes this to happen, so a cool out-building is a better choice. We recommend galvanized cans as rodents are able to chew through plastic. Whether it’s the little teeth of mice or the larger teeth of squirrels, plastic is ineffective at keeping them out.

Before you fill the feeder, make sure that it has been cleaned and sterilized. A good soak in some warm water will loosen all of the dirt that builds up in most tube feeders. The soft bristles of feeder brushes allow you to scrub without scratching the feeders. To sterilize, add one part of vinegar to ten parts water. Always rinse thoroughly before letting the feeder dry completely and filling. With a wooden feeder, follow the same steps without a prolonged soak. A good alternative to wood is the recycled plastic feeders that are now being made. The plastic does not allow organic material to grow as readily as wood does.

Feeder Fresh is an organic additive that is sprinkled into feeders that offer nyger or sunflower chips. Keeping the feeders free of mold is an obvious benefit to the birds you are feeding. It is added to the feeder when you fill it with seed.

A tidy and clean feeding station is better for the birds that visit your yard. Thanks for being responsible.

Enjoy your birds !
Rosann
Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

How to Feed the Birds but not the Squirrels

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

On a daily basis at Wild Birds Unlimited in Grosse Pointe Woods, we hear about the abilities of squirrels to successfully turn bird feeders into squirrel feeders. Even though we advise customers as to the capabilities of squirrels, some insist that the squirrels won’t be able to climb the feeder pole they are purchasing. We smile knowingly when they are back within days to admit that the little rascals easily shimmied up the pole and are monopolizing the seed.

Squirrels are members of the rodent family. The Latin word rodere means “to gnaw”, as we can see in the damage these critters cause to our new feeders. Did you know that squirrels gnaw in order to keep their teeth sharp and short? If they didn’t, their teeth would be an unruly length since they grow six inches per year. While squirrels can cause frustrating damage to feeders, this does not have to be the case. There are many strategies that you can employ to keep squirrels away from feeders.

The acrobatic abilities of squirrels are legendary; at least here in Michigan. Pound for pound, Olympic gymnasts can’t compare. Since squirrels can jump up from the ground almost six feet and sideways a distance of eight feet, the location of a feeder within your yard is crucial to the success of feeding birds, not squirrels. A feeder hung from a branch would need to be placed eight feet from the trunk, forcing the squirrel to approach from above since the sideways approach would not work. The baffle that is placed above a feeder should be substantially wider than the feeder itself which is why it is difficult to keep squirrels out of wooden feeders hung from trees. At Wild Birds Unlimited in GPW, we find that the most successful baffle is one that was designed by an engineer who was fed up with the furry critters eating the seed he was offering the birds in his yard. The shape of the baffle forces the squirrel down and away from the feeder.

Both wooden feeders and tube shaped feeders can be mounted or hung from poles. Many people report that they have greased the pole with a variety of substances including cooking oil, WD40, or Vaseline. While it can be entertaining to watch the squirrels slip down the pole, there are two problems with this approach. The first is that the substance needs to be reapplied as it wears off onto the squirrel. The second problem is that the matted fur of the squirrel causes its belly to be exposed to the elements, which can lead to hypothermia.

On a pole-mounted system, the baffle needs to be placed five feet above the ground on the pole and preferably made of metal. Plastic baffles will end up becoming a way for squirrels to keep their teeth filed down, as previously mentioned. The pole system that the feeder is placed on should have eight feet of distance from any surface that the squirrel can leap from vertically, such as a deck rail, shrub, tree or another feeder system! If the pole system is under a tree or near a structure such as a garage, their jump from above will give them a further advantage. I’ve watched as a squirrel leveraged itself from the handle of a shovel that I had left upright in the ground, giving him the edge in making a successful leap.

One of the strategies is to use a seed that squirrels do not prefer, which is safflower. The seed has a bitter taste and is not preferred by mammals, while songbirds enjoy its flavor. Cardinals, chickadees, house finches, Carolina wrens, and mourning doves all come to safflower. When you have a feeder that can be accessed by squirrels, such as a window feeder, safflower would be the perfect solution. Safflower is grown primarily for human consumption, as we use the oil from the seed for cooking. Therefore, the cost can be prohibitive for some budgets. However, when you aren’t feeding the squirrels, your seed last much longer and can be more economical.

By far the best way to keep squirrels away from the bird seed is to use the feeder that has a counter weight, causing the seed ports to close off when a squirrel lands on the perch. The feeders of this type are made of metal so they are impervious to the gnawing efforts of squirrels. There are many excellently designed feeders that incorporate the counter weight system including the Eliminator, appropriately named.

Whether you decide to baffle against them, buy feeders that exclude them, use Safflower seed or feed them their own feast, you have to admit that squirrels can be entertaining and their persistence is to be admired! Good Luck with making your bird feeders squirrel proof!

Enjoy your birds !
Rosann
Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

How Birds Survive the Winter Cold

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

Wild Birds that do not migrate have interesting strategies for survival in the cold winter, both natural and some that are provided by our caring customers at Wild Birds Unlimited in Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. Those customers often ask what they can do to help winter resident birds survive, such as Cardinals, Black-capped Chickadees, and White-breasted Nuthatches that they see in their yards.

Birds survive winter in part by using layers of feathers that they fluff out, trapping air which then insulates them. Fall molt is when birds increase the number of feathers that they have, growing as much as 30% more feathers than in warmer months, adding to their ability to keep out the cold. Smaller birds have more feathers per unit of body weight than larger birds.

The lower legs and feet of birds are tendinous as opposed to having fleshy parts exposed as in mammals. Therefore, there is no heat loss from that area. A birds’ bill is made of horn similar to our fingernails and does not suffer heat loss either.

Birds use their metabolism to produce heat and run a hotter engine in the winter than in the summer months. They produce this additional heat by consuming more food – up to twenty times more on a winter day than during warmer months. Their choice is energy rich foods, which results in a high concentration of glucose in the blood, creating a higher metabolism.

During the cold winter nights, cavity-nesting birds such as chickadees and nuthatches will pile into a tree hollow or a roost box that you provide, sometimes in groups to keep each other warm. In addition, some birds are able to lower their metabolism and body temperature at night, which saves energy. For example, a chickadees’ heart rate slows from 2,000 down to 500 beats per minute and body temperature goes from 108 degrees to twenty degrees lower during the night.

During the daytime, a bird may shiver, with this muscular energy producing heat. Another adaptation to cold is some birds’ ability to store seeds in a crop, an enlargement of the esophagus. This food is used during the night to maintain higher metabolism, especially in finches.

But how does any of this explain the ducks and geese on Michigan’s, Lake St. Clair ice? They have a special adaptation where the arteries and veins in their feet lie next to each other, with the cold returning blood of the veins being warmed by the arterial blood, resulting in no loss of heat.

Mother Nature does a great job of giving birds the tools they can use to survive winter as long as they can find sufficient food. Stock up those bird feeders and utilize your strategy for warmth – a hot drink and a fire!

Enjoy your birds!
Rosann

Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Feed Birds Suet During Winter

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

With the winter approaching, birds need a higher fat diet in order to endure the colder temperatures. Here in Michigan at Wild Birds Unlimited of GPW, we are ready with a stockpile of suet to help. This is the time of year to beef up your wild bird feeding station – literally!

Beef fat, or suet, has been a favorite winter-feeding strategy for those who love to watch the birds. Pure rendered beef fat is great to use when you can’t keep the squirrels out of the suet feeder. Without added nuts or seeds, the pure suet isn’t high on the list of a squirrel’s priorities for food.

If you can place a suet feeder out of the reach of squirrels, you can offer suet with peanuts or seed added to the formed cake of fat. Squirrel-proof can be obtained if the feeder is placed on a pole system with a baffle top at five feet above ground and the set-up eight feet away from any leaping opportunity. You’ll find that the woodpeckers. Chickadees and nuthatches in your yard will visit both pure and enhanced suet, with an emphasis on eating the high fat nuts when the weather is colder. Some suet will have fruit, which is attractive to red-bellied woodpeckers.

There is also a hot pepper version of suet, meant as a squirrel deterrent, since mammals have more taste buds than birds and find the hot pepper distasteful. The birds don’t detect the hot flavoring, allowing you to place the suet feeder in any location for viewing.

If European Starlings become a persistent problem, try hanging your feeders so that they are oriented with access only from the bottom. There are a number of feeders that are made specifically for this purpose. The Starling Stumper, when added to your current suet cage feeder, accomplishes this goal as well.

When birds eat suet, they stay at the feeder for a longer period of time, allowing you to appreciate their crisp colors in the bright sun of winter. Gone are the old feathers that were worn from the rigors of rearing a family or two. The fall molt has provided them with a new set of feathers, including an extra amount for warmth.

Feeding suet in the fall and winter is one of the most enjoyable ways to watch birds in your yard.

Enjoy your birds!

Rosann
Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Ten Things You Can Do to Save Song Birds

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

For a bird lover like me, there is not finer time to be out watching wild birds than during Spring migration. The wood warblers have arrived as they settle in to breed or more likely, carry on further north to do so. Their fabulous colors and patterns, their diminutive size and their fascinating song all combine to keep me in awe of their journeys from Central and South America.

As joyful as it is to watch them, it is also heart breaking to know that millions of song birds are lost yearly as a result of the actions of humans. One of my mentors in the world of birding and environmental awareness was Fred Charbonneau. He loaned me a book, Silence of the Songbirds, by Bridget Stutchbury. For you fellow bird lovers’ out there, I heartily endorse this book. Not only did the author set forth a very interesting read as to the various topics, solutions were offered to the challenges faced by migrant birds. Here is her version of Ten things You Can Do to Save Songbirds.

1) Buy Shade Grown Coffee – Forest songbirds that lived in the tropics often live in traditional coffee farms where there are plenty of trees and food for birds. Most commercial coffee comes from sun coffee farms that have few trees and use lots of fertilizers and pesticides. Buy accordingly and make sure your coffee shop is aware of your preference.
2) Buy only organic produce from tropical countries – Tropical countries use large amounts of pesticides that are highly toxic to birds, including chemicals that are banned or restricted in North America. Non-organic banana plantations use one of the highest pesticide loads of any crop. Buy accordingly and make sure that your grocer is aware of our preference.
3) Buy organic for crops with heavy pesticide use – some crops in North America are relatively dangerous to birds because of the type of pesticide used. Crops such as potatoes, corn and cotton pose a chemical threat to birds.
4) Buy wood and paper products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) – Companies certified by the FSC use sustainable logging practices that help make sure the boreal forest will always be a home for the billions of songbirds that nest there. In my experience, few lumber sellers are aware of FSC and I spent a great deal of time educating them when I was attempting to make a purchase.
5) Buy paper products made from recycled paper – The boreal forest is being cut down to fuel the enormous demand for paper products (toilet paper, paper towel, mail-order catalogs, cards). Buy accordingly from the many choices that are available.
6) Turn city lights off at night during migration – Many songbirds migrate at night and are attracted to city lights, which they think are stars. Millions of songbirds die every year after getting trapped among our towering skyscrapers. Encourage your building owner to comply during migration – mid-March through June. Handouts regarding this issue available at Wild Birds Unlimited.
7) Reduce bird-window collisions – Birds cannot see glass and fly toward reflections of trees or toward what looks like an opening in the wall. Place bird feeders very close (less than two feet) or very far (more than seven feet) from windows to reduce fatal injuries to your visitors. Consider adding Window Alerts to your windows that are the source of strikes. The material that the Alerts are made of act to give birds a reference to the presence of glass.
8) Make your backyard bird-friendly by planting shrubs and trees – During migration, tired and starving songbirds will land almost anywhere in search of a safe place to rest and eat. Invite them to your backyard by offering cover and fruiting trees and shrubs, preferably native. Reference the growers of native plants at the Michigan native Plant Producer Association handout available at Wild Birds Unlimited or at www.mnppa.org.
9) Keep your cat indoors – An average outdoor cat kills about one songbird per week, so a typical community with a hundred cats that roam outdoors will kill over 1,000 songbirds during the breeding season. There are over 75 million cats in North America! If your neighbor has a cat, give them the brochure Cats Indoors, available at Wild Birds Unlimited or at www.abcbirds.org.
10) Go pesticide-free on your lawn – The ingredients in many lawn and garden pesticides are moderately or highly toxic to birds (e.g., acephate, malathion,dichlorvos) There are a number of landscape companies that are pesticide free. Contact local Motion at 313-881-2263 for company information.

Although it would be ideal if all readers could embrace and effectuate all of these changes as well as inspire others to do so, remember that every journey begins with a single step. Choose one, choose all, but I hope that you make a choice to make a difference.

Enjoy your birds!
Rosann
Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

Black-capped Chickadees

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

I’ve seen Black-capped Chickadees work their wonder on even the toughest of men. Once they begin to talk about these birds and their visits to their bird feeders, words like “cute” and “adorable” start to become part of their conversation. And rightly so! This is one of the best parts of my job as the owner of Wild Birds Unlimited in Grosse Pointe Woods!

Black-capped Chickadees are the darlings of the bird world. This tiny bird, only five inches in length and weighing .3 to .5 ounces, has a short neck and large head, giving it a distinctive, rather spherical body shape. The tail is narrow and long, which can be noticed at a distance. The short bill is one of the cutest features – a bit thicker than a warbler’s but thinner than a finch’s. The cap and bib are black, the cheeks white, the back soft gray, the wing feathers gray edged with white, and the underparts soft buffy on the sides grading to white beneath. The cap extends down just below the tiny black eyes. The average age that a chickadee reaches is two to four years with the oldest living chickadee on record having attained the age of twelve years and five months.

In addition, their behavior and their voice add to their cuteness factor. Chickadees fly with a slight up and down roll instead of in a straight line. Their wings blur in short, fast bursts of speed. They can cling to feeders in a number of positions. When eating in the wild, they are foliage gleaners, turning every way necessary to inspect for insects and seeds. It seems that everyone learns the namesake call of a chickadee as his or her first bird “song”.

The more dee notes in a chickadee-dee-dee call, the higher the threat level that is being communicated to others. Most birds that associate with chickadee flocks respond to chickadee alarm calls, even when their own species doesn’t have a similar alarm call. The territorial/mating song of the Black-capped Chickadee is a simple, pure 2 or 3-note whistled descending “fee-bee” or “hey, sweetie”.
Chickadees are one of the easiest birds to attract to bird feeders, coming to suet as well as a variety of seeds including sunflower, safflower and peanuts. They acclimate to all types of feeders as well. Black-capped Chickadees seldom remain at feeders except to grab a seed to eat elsewhere, holding the seed between their feet and using their tiny bill as a chisel to remove the shell. Chickadees will store seed away in anticipation of winter, a process called caching.

Black-capped Chickadee by Andrea Rose

One of the most fascinating facts about chickadees is their capacity to remember where they cached their seeds. In their brains, neurons contain long-term memory and are used to store the information regarding seed location. Once a neuron contains a long-term memory, it is permanently altered, no longer able to be used in circuits involved in new memory formation. Small birds are able to allow neurons containing old information to die, replacing them with new neurons so they can adapt to changes, including the new location of stored food. Researchers at the Rockefeller University found new neurons in the chickadee hippocampal complex throughout the year, peaking in October, just in time to cache for the winter!

How do these little sprites manage to survive through the winter? Chickadees use a “scarf” strategy, with feathers covering their nostrils in order to pre-heat the air that enters their lungs. Fluffing their feathers is another winter strategy utilized by Chickadees. A study done to measure the effectiveness of this strategy showed that in zero degree weather, the temperature next to a Chickadees body was 70 degrees as a result of the insulating ability of the fluffed feathers. In addition, when they are molting for fall plumage, they grow back 30% more feathers for insulation.

Chickadees are also able to go hypothermic each night, dropping their core temperature down by 15 degrees. This allows them to conserve up to 25% of their energy needs. Chickadees also have the ability to shiver for a prolonged period of time, which helps to produce body heat. There is an organ inside of a chickadee’s ear, the Vitale organ, which detects changes in barometric pressure, signaling a change in the weather. This explains the flurry of activity at the feeder before an on coming storm! Chickadees use cavities to spend the night, which also affords them protection from the elements. Leaving a nest box (bird house) out during the winter may help them in the event of a shortage of natural cavities, such as those made by woodpeckers.

Chickadees mate for life and the pair is the core of a winter flock. Other non-breeding chickadees within that flock are generally not the offspring of the adult pair. Other bird species that associate with chickadee flocks in the winter include nuthatches, woodpeckers, kinglets, and brown creepers.

Whether in the field or watching through your window, I hope that you have a chance to be entertained by Black-capped Chickadees.

Enjoy your birds!
Rosann
Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

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Get Ready for Fall and Winter Bird Feeding

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

Let’s talk about the importance of cleaning your bird feeder At Wild Birds Unlimited, of Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan, we know with the change to cooler temperatures, many people will be getting their yard ready for fall and winter wild bird feeding. At Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, we can help you review your feeding strategy in order to get the most enjoyment from the hobby of bird feeding.

Good, quality seeds are the staple of any feeding station in the colder months. Once natural seeds have been depleted, birds will look to supplement their diet with the bird seed at your feeders. The most favored seed is the black oil sunflower, favored by more birds than any other seed. Using sunflower as the main seed in a blend and adding other favored seeds such as safflower and white proso millet will bring in all of the resident birds. Birds that perch while they eat prefer the sunflower and safflower, whereas the ground feeding birds prefer the millet that falls to the ground from the bird feeder.

House Finch with a safflower seed, by Andrea Rose

Before you fill your wild bird feeder, make sure that it has been cleaned and sterilized. A good soak in some warm water will loosen all of the dirt that builds up in most tube feeders. The soft bristles of feeder brushes allow you to scrub without scratching the feeders. To sterilize, add one part vinegar or bleach to ten parts water and let the feeder soak for at least ten minutes. Always rinse thoroughly before letting the feeder dry completely and filling. With a wooden feeder, follow the same steps without a prolonged soak.

Make sure that the placement of your bird feeders allows birds to fly to cover in the form of bushes or evergreens in the event that a cat or a hawk pursues them. If you use a number of bird feeders, it is a good idea to keep some distance in between them so that the birds are not competing with each other for space. Offering seeds at a lower level for the ground feeding birds by using a platform feeder will give those birds their own space as well as keeping the seed dry. Thistle, or nyger, is the seed of choice for American Goldfinches and other winter finch visitors. Suet is the favored bird feeding station delicacy if you are trying to satisfy woodpeckers, chickadees and nuthatches. This high fat food goes a long way in keeping birds fueled with the energy that they need. In the colder months, birds don’t necessarily need different foods; they just need more of it! Don’t be surprised to see your feeders empty more rapidly in response to the dip in temperature.

Water is a necessity for birds all through the year and winter is no exception. Heaters can be added to existing baths or, complete baths with a heater built in can be purchased. And then, there is always the daily ritual of taking the hot water out each day and replacing the frozen water with this new source! Whichever you use, your birds will appreciate this necessity of life being provided to them.

One of the most forgotten elements of a favorable winter habitat is shelter. When the temperature drops and the wind increases, birds need shelter more than anything. Evergreens can provide this element but if your yard lacks them, consider adding a winter roost box or a birdhouse. I was delighted to learn that this years’ fledged downy woodpecker has been using a birdhouse that I placed in my yard. Every night at the same time, he lands on the roof and looks around, and once “The coast is clear”; he enters the house for shelter through the night. There are roost boxes that can be placed within the yard to provide shelter for a number of birds at one time. Sharing body heat, the chance of survival increases for those birds that roost together.

From your point of view, the placement of bird feeders is all about your point of view. If you situate them where you can’t enjoy them, bird feeding will become a chore as opposed to a hobby for you to enjoy. Ask yourself where in your home you are most likely to sit and watch the birds. Don’t rule out the side or front yards if they are where you find yourself looking out the window. A small window bird feeder added to the kitchen is another way to enhance the hobby for your enjoyment. Feel good about yourself for providing for these fragile creatures during this time of challenge for them.

Enjoy your birds!

Rosann Kovalcik,

Owner of Wild Birds Unlimited, Grosse Pointe Woods

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Which Wild Birds Visit Your Yards During Fall Migration in Michigan

Posted on October 6, 2014 by admin

This fall can be so relaxing and rewarding in our yards because of the changing bird activity. At our Wild Birds Unlimited in Grosse Pointe Woods, we are hearing from customers that they are seeing a good number of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, visiting both flowers and hummingbird feeders. This is their time of year to fatten up before they make their way back to Mexico or in some cases, as far south as Costa Rica. Hummingbird feeders should be kept up through mid-October in Michigan, the latest date that we get reports of these birds.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird by Andrea Rose

Goldfinch numbers also swell as youngsters accompany their parents, making their presence known by the constant “chippee, chippee”, their begging call for food. In many yards, finch feeders have every perch occupied with a Goldfinch. In the tall coreopsis and the woodland sunflower that grow in my yard, the Goldfinches gather by the dozens to gorge themselves on the bounty of seeds that are now available on these flowers.

Blue Jay vocalizations are also more prevalent as they begin their southward journey. I always hope that a few will decide to make my yard a part of their winter habitat. Just the opposite of the increasing Blue Jay screams, most of the resident birds have become silent. The Cardinal still sings early in the morning, but only then. No more days filled with the songs of the Robins, interspersed with the “coo” of the Mourning Dove and the “fee-bee” of the Chickadee. The Chickadees are still vocal but in a different way. Their territorial call has been replaced with contact calls. Now we hear “dee-dee” or “chickadee”, which are both sounds Chickadees use to let the rest of the flock know their whereabouts.

One bird that has a significant increase in numbers is the House Sparrow. Every day we hear from customers that they have huge clouds of House Sparrows descending on every bird feeder available. Surely, this is one of the most successful breeders that we have locally. At least other birds notice the sparrow activity, so perhaps some seed eating migrants will see the crowd and join in as they migrate through the area. This is also the time of the year to look for Eastern Towhees and White-throated Sparrows. Some customers of WBU GPW have reported Rose-breasted Grosbeaks at their seed feeders, always a welcome visitor.

There have also been a number of warblers visiting yards. Watch for them gleaning insects from the evergreens and deciduous trees. We’ve had Wilson’s Warbler and American Redstart eating insects as well as visiting the birdbath – the noise of dripping water gets them every time. Other insect eating birds that we may see in our yards include the Ruby-crowned Kinglet and the Golden-crowned Kinglet, both of which flit about in a way that makes you believe they are spending more energy than they are getting from the insects they are gleaning from trees.

At dusk, some of us may live in an area where we can watch the spectacle of blackbirds gathering in large flocks. These flocks are comprised of Red-winged Blackbirds, Grackles and Cowbirds. They usually choose large trees as a roosting area for the night. It can be interesting to watch them as they drop into the trees and then listen to their version of a nighttime lullaby, which our human ears hear as squawking and screeching.
Take the time to watch for new birds of fall migration, as well as seeing our resident birds settle into fall flocks and fatten up after a hectic summer of breeding. You never know what you might see.

Enjoy your birds!
Rosann

Wild Birds Unlimited of Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

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