For the birds Thread

[donttread]

I think there was one of these some time ago, maybe not.
A thread about the birds. We have a family of Cardinals lining in the neighborhood this summer and a fair sampling of more mundane species from Chicadee to Blue Jay and Sparrows.
I've been feeding them but not over doing it so it doesn't encourage the squirrels/chipmonks.
But sometimes the feeders get low and it feels for all the world like the birds are waiting for me, rather impatiently, to feed them. I step outside and they are just there, getting close and even making some noise
Am I crazy?

[darroll]

We feed the birds. A couple of nut hatches come to feed.
The are afraid of nothing. They keep eating when you get close to them.

[Just AnotherPerson]

Not crazy at all, the birds do wait for you. We feed a few squirrels here and they will come up and ask for food in their own way. A few small sparrows eat some of the peanuts here and there, and just like the squirrels they come up and look at us until we go get them some food.

This winter I was out in my yard and this deer came up to me, and just looked at me. Somehow I just knew he or she was asking me for something to eat. I talked to him or her and told them to wait for me while I went in to see if I could find something. Sure enough when I went out he or she was waiting for me. I gave the grateful deer an apple.

I am pretty sure that we communicate beyond language as we know it. This might sound sappy but I feel it's heart to heart. We can understand each other without words. I think words have meaning mainly due to the energy behind them.

[RMNIXON]

I saw an amazing sight not long ago.

We have crows and even some larger Ravens that are the bullies of the neighborhood. And this little common sparrow was dive bombing and attacking a crow relentlessly. I have never seen that behavior before and my only thought was this crow stole eggs or otherwise disturbed a nest?

[donttread]

I saw an amazing sight not long ago.

We have crows and even some larger Ravens that are the bullies of the neighborhood. And this little common sparrow was dive bombing and attacking a crow relentlessly. I have never seen that behavior before and my only thought was this crow stole eggs or otherwise disturbed a nest?

I've seen it in the air, smaller birds harassing a bigger bird they probably see as a threat, but not coming after a crow like that. I have been dive bombed though.

[Tahuyaman]

We used to have a bunch of humming birds here but this spring and summer they’ve been scarce. We had a real hard freeze this winter. I had a humming bird feeder on my deck. They visited it regularly. I went out one day when it was frozen and a group of humming birds were just sitting on my deck rail Looking at it. They looked lethargic. I thawed it out and let them eat. Every hour or so I had to thaw it out. I thought they were going to survive, but I guess they didn’t.

[Abby08]

I saw an amazing sight not long ago.

We have crows and even some larger Ravens that are the bullies of the neighborhood. And this little common sparrow was dive bombing and attacking a crow relentlessly. I have never seen that behavior before and my only thought was this crow stole eggs or otherwise disturbed a nest?

I witnessed a bird fight, a pair of Roadrunners against a Raven.

I don't know what it was over, but, the Roadrunners were the victors.

[Standing Wolf]

Most of our neighbors go with desert landscaping, but the wife loves her native plants, shrubs and flowers and she also has two bird baths going and puts out numerous hummingbird feeders - so the birds all congregate here. We love the quail - the little ones as they're running around being herded by the parents look like cartoon characters - and the wife buys these things called quail blocks that contain the seeds quail especially like and she puts them under certain bushes where the quail will nest.

She was gone for almost a week a while back and her hummingbirds let me know that their feeders weren't being tended to; I'd go out to feed the goldfish in their pond and a hummingbird would come and hover less than a foot in front of my face, giving me a hard time.

A couple of months ago some grackles - I assume a nesting pair - started dive-bombing me and the dogs whenever we were in the back yard and came near the big ficus. They weren't quite as aggressive as I've seen mockingbirds get - not actually hitting us, just coming close - but it was still annoying. Then I had some folks come out and trim and thin out the ficus and I guess they scared the grackles off because I haven't seen them since.

We also have Mexican doves and several other species. The wife knows them all, I don't.

[Abby08]

We feed the birds. A couple of nut hatches come to feed.
The are afraid of nothing. They keep eating when you get close to them.

Those Nut Hatches are fearless, they would stay right there, as we were hanging the feeders, even hopping onto our hands.

We currently have Cardinals, a mated pair and their babies, then there's the usual sparrows and Doves......today, we counted the Quail as they came across the street, one at a time, hiding behind and, in the bushes, all along the way, as they made their way to our yard and, the feeders.......30 quail, 4 adults, the rest babies.

[Abby08]

Most of our neighbors go with desert landscaping, but the wife loves her native plants, shrubs and flowers and she also has two bird baths going and puts out numerous hummingbird feeders - so the birds all congregate here. We love the quail - the little ones as they're running around being herded by the parents look like cartoon characters - and the wife buys these things called quail blocks that contain the seeds quail especially like and she puts them under certain bushes where the quail will nest.

She was gone for almost a week a while back and her hummingbirds let me know that their feeders weren't being tended to; I'd go out to feed the goldfish in their pond and a hummingbird would come and hover less than a foot in front of my face, giving me a hard time.

A couple of months ago some grackles - I assume a nesting pair - started dive-bombing me and the dogs whenever we were in the back yard and came near the big ficus. They weren't quite as aggressive as I've seen mockingbirds get - not actually hitting us, just coming close - but it was still annoying. Then I had some folks come out and trim and thin out the ficus and I guess they scared the grackles off because I haven't seen them since.

We also have Mexican doves and several other species. The wife knows them all, I don't.

A Grackle was dive bombing my dog in the backyard a few years ago, he jumped up and, grabbed it as it was about to dive on him.

Grackle didn't make it.