For the Birds
For the past while, I’ve been feeding birds out on our balcony. Over that time, I have bought, grew, and acquired all sorts of different shrubs and flowers. The birds’ diet has been expanded from peanuts, to mixed seeds. I recently started giving them cookies that I bake with oddments about the kitchen, like oats, maple syrup, and all sorts of nuts that are on the verge of going off. It’s been a good way to use up all those ends of packets of dry seeds or nuts. I use a lot of nuts in baking. Similarly, I’m enthusiastic about including seeds in my diet, but I always seem to loose the taste for a particular type half way though. Too much of one thing I guess. Bundling all the ends and odds into some tasty cookies is a great way to finish them off. We usually eat a few, and then when they are chewy, they’re perfect for the birds.
I think a combination of a more varied diet and a safe looking habitat has been key to attracting more and more of the little guys over the past while. I’ve been spotting a group of a dozen young House Sparrows, two Blue Tits, and three or so Pigeons. The Pigeons wait around until the little guys arrive and polish off the scraps that land on the balcony floor. The House Sparrows usually come in the morning and the evening. I wasn’t sure if there were two groups, or if was the same flock in the evenings. I think they’re usually the same, with one or two stragglers, as the behavior between the main group is quite consistent. I’ve learned a lot about the little guys; they’re not as placid and fearful as I had imagined. They go crazy for the cookies, followed by the seeds, then peanuts. Boy, do they fight for their preference. Those that are stronger get their pick, the others either go for the peanuts or wait around until the larger ones have had their fill. The Blue Tits are interesting too, up until recently they only came when the coast was completely clear. Now, one will edge his way in, and if there aren’t too many competitors, he will ruffle up his (significantly smaller) body and stand his ground. He even managed to scare away one of the female House Sparrows this week. I’m going to continue feeding them throughout the Winter. It’s surprising how cheap you can pick up a large amount of mixed seeds suitable for wild birds at garden centers. I’d encourage anyone to do it. The little guys will appreciate it, and you will be surprisingly entertained.
This entry was posted on Sunday, September 6th, 2009 at 11:45 pm and is filed under NaBloPoMo, Personal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
