birdfeeders | wordsfromanneli

November 29, 2021
by wordsfromanneli 53 Comments

Dim Sum

Sorry. It’s not about Chinese food, although I would love to have some right about now.

The brightness of the sky today got “dim some” when the fog rolled in. After days of heavy rain, the clouds regrouped and pondered their next mode of attack, increasingly darkening the sky as the day wore on.

After a while, the fog moved into our place higher up on the hill, and we lived in a cloud for much of the day.

Even Rufus, the spotted towhee, had trouble finding the feeder until Goldie (the golden crowned sparrow) chirped to let him in on the meal.

Groping, groping as we fly,

What has happened to the sky?

It’s not blue nor full of rain,

Will we see the sun again?

Chilly, chilly is the air,

Need to find nutritious fare,

Build our strength and warm us up,

Need some grains for us to sup.

Foggy, foggy all around,

Where can all the seeds be found?

Goldie chirps and calls to me,

She’s my compass, friend, I see.

Sharing, sharing all the seeds,

She has way more than she needs,

Nice of her to share her lunch,

Think I love her a whole bunch.

By the way, Rufus and Goldie both invite you to check out Anneli’s bargains for her books at https://wordsfromanneli.com/2021/11/21/book-bargains/

A great deal until Christmas.

January 10, 2021
by wordsfromanneli 39 Comments

Dinner at the Diner

I wonder if there’s a restaurant up there. They dropped some food here on the floor, but maybe there’s fresher stuff up top.

Ah … this is more like it. A real borgasschmord of meaty worms and grains. Looks like a zinnia dropped some seeds here, and a bunch of other weedy things left promises of more weeds in the spring. I could help Anneli out by eating the weed seeds. But it might be easier to go dine at The Suet Block today.

Uh-oh! Looks like Mr. Darling Starling is already tucking in.

“Hey, Star! Don’t you know Anneli doesn’t want you here?”

“And why might that be, you little piece of Junc-o?”

“Well … she says you gobble too much food and don’t share, and anyway, she doesn’t like feeding baby killers. You know you’re a nest robber.”

“Harrumpf! Watch it, Twirp, or I’ll peck your eye out. And anyway, you’re not social distancing.”

“OMG! OMG!” said Harry, the hairy woodpecker. “I’d like to go down there, but – sheesh! That starling is star-k raving mad! … and-and-and he’s m-m-mean too.”

“I’m being good, Mr. Starling. See? I’ll keep my distance. I’ll just sit here and watch until you’re done.”

“Well, Twirp, you should have brought a chair. I’m gonna be a while.”

“Heh, heh, heh. Here comes Anneli. Look at that coward fly. He’s a “star” at running away. Coward! Heh-heh-heh. Wish Anneli would sit out here in the rain with us … sigh….”

December 2, 2020
by wordsfromanneli 34 Comments

The Challenge of Change

A new birdfeeder presented unexpected challenges for some birds. The seeds were visible, but access to them was different from the way it was done in the old feeders. All the outlets for the seeds are near the bottom of this new feeder.

Very simple for most of the birds. The sparrow has it figured out. “Come on down,” he calls, but the towhee, on the top right, is still puzzled.

“Nice seeds, but how in the heck do you get at them?”

“Whatcha doin’ up there, Rufus?” the Oregon junco called.

“ARRRGGHH! These are the darndest things. I can see them. Why can’t I get at them?”

“You just stick your head in the red dish … look … like this!”

“I just don’t get it. I’m looking right at the seeds, and I can’t get them.”

Honestly, I don’t know what else to say to him. What a dimwit.

“I guess you could always have some suet, Rufus.”

Brand new feeder, brand new seeds,

Specially made to suit their needs.

High-tech model, high-tech spout

Way too hard to figure out.

Rufus hammers, Rufus picks,

He’s exhausted all his tricks.

Junco coaxes, junco shows,

Why is it that junco knows,

How to get them, how to eat?

Rufus must admit defeat.

He can’t get it, he can’t do it,

Junco points up at the suet.

Don’t go hungry, don’t despair,

Eat that suet over there.

Feeling stupid, feeling dumb,

What a birdbrain I’ve become.

Rufus gorges, Rufus gobbles,

Now so fat, his flying wobbles.

February 26, 2020
by wordsfromanneli 25 Comments

Late for Dinner

My reward for going outside to sweep off the back deck was to see the pileated woodpecker fly in and land on the nearest tree. I hurried inside to get my camera thinking the same thought I always have at a time like that — Should I stand here and enjoy the sight of the bird, or should I maybe miss out and have him fly away while I go get my camera. I took a chance that he’d still be there, but I was in a hurry to snap any photo I could get. Haste makes waste, they say, and sure enough, the photos were not as sharp and clear as if I’d taken the time to take a good steady picture.

But he does look like he’s about to fly away any second, doesn’t he?

And he did. Right over to the birdfeeders where all was empty. I was running late with the refilling of the feeders and now I would pay for it by having the woodpecker fly away. He looks shocked at the empty cage where the suet block is usually kept. I don’t think he’s crazy about the seeds, but he must have wondered why I hadn’t replaced the suet.

As he wondered what to do, he noticed the truck tire so close to the birdfeeders.

“Yikes! It’s the invasion of the human truck drivers. Looks awfully close to the feeder. Maybe he won’t see me if I stay hidden behind this post.”

Seeing his dilemma, I brought out more suet and more birdseed as soon as the coast was clear. He had already left, but I’m sure he’ll be back.

January 15, 2020
by wordsfromanneli 17 Comments

Lincoln Guards his Lunch

It’s snowing furiously and the wind has made a mess of the yard, littering it with fir branches.

It’s cold enough to freeze the hummingbird feeders. I alternate between two of them, thawing one in a jug of warm water while the other is available to the birds.

The squirrels, Lincoln and Della, have been getting walnuts (partially shelled) and sunflower seeds. But now the jays have discovered the goodies in the woodshed and are giving the squirrels competition.

The video below is about a minute long. I took it from inside the house through the window. The snow is blurring the scene as much as my dirty dining room window is, but I didn’t want to miss the show. It’s not Oscar quality, but it might be mildly entertaining to watch as Lincoln defends his lunch.

September 5, 2019
by wordsfromanneli 24 Comments

Help Yourself

This spring, a friend gave me some started sunflowers to plant in my garden. I had never had success with them, mainly because the wind often knocked them down as soon as they got more than a couple of feet tall. This time I planted them by the fence and tied the young plants to it as they grew.

Now they are taller than I am and besides making me happy whenever I look at them, they are making the birds in my yard happy.

I had been feeling guilty about not refilling the feeder this summer, but I hadn’t wanted to attract hawks (as I’ve done other years) and inadvertently killing the very birds I wanted to feed. I decided I could always fill the feeders when the weather got cooler and food became scarce.

But the nuthatches had other ideas. They’re used to helping themselves and somehow they knew that the sunflower seeds were ready to eat.

I had a very hard time getting any pictures of them because they are so fast, but here are a couple of photos that are not as blurry as the 40+ others that I deleted.