Seasonal Bird News

Dealing with Starlings & Grackles

This is the time of year when many of you are faced with several different challenges at feeding stations including chipmunks and raccoons, but the winner of the “most complained about feeder pests” category belongs to Grackles and Starlings.

When they are raising young they seek quick, easy food sources and will visit feeders in droves, eventually bringing their babies.  Their size, numbers, and relentless presence will pressure other birds away from feeders. We recommend a variety of strategies to deal with their presence and lessen their impact. Follow some of these strategies and you may have acceptable results.

European Starling

Common Grackle

• Offer nothing but Safflower seed in the feeders most easily used by the intruders rather than sunflower, or blends with shelled seeds, shelled peanuts, and fruit. Safflower is smaller than sunflower and has a shape difficult for them to grasp, and a hard shell that Grackles and Starlings cannot crack open.

Caged feeder

Clinging bird feeder

• Limit opportunities. Offer only feeders that are difficult for a large bird like a grackle to use, for instance, small bird only, tube-type, or caged feeders. This will also limit Cardinals but they will be happy with safflower and with whatever falls to the ground. Tube-type feeders can be made more challenging by shortening perches. They are usually made of aluminum and easy to cut. Half a perch will present great difficulties for a Grackle and Starling but small birds will use them easily.

• Suet is a favorite food source during this time because it’s soft and easy to take large chunks. Removing the food source for a week may cause the problem birds to go elsewhere. There are caged-type suet feeders that allow access by smaller birds. Larger woodpeckers will learn to hang on the cage and reach into the feeder for the suet.

Caged suet feeder

Erva caged suet feeder

• Another thing to try is to take note of the timing of their visits. You can offer smaller amounts of food, like a third of a suet cake at a time, or just a cup of seed in a platform feeder so your desired visitors have a consistent food source for part of the day. When the problem visitors show up there is little or no food remaining.

Return of the Grosbeak

The first sightings of Rose-breasted grosbeaks are less than a week away! Adult male RBG’s are very easily identified with their black and white plumage and big red V on the chest which really stands out against the stark white underside. The head is hooded with black and the wings are black with two white patches, one at the shoulder and one closer to the wing tip. Female RBG’s are primarily brown and white, with a pale yellowish breast and belly and a prominent white eyebrow. They have been described as looking like a House finch on steroids. The beak is large enabling this bird to crack open all kinds of seeds and capture insects which are a significant part of their diet during the breeding season.

Fortunately for us, RBGs are extremely easy to attract to feeders during their migration and don’t require anything special. Offerings of sunflower, safflower, peanuts, and even suet are likely to yield good results. The song of the male Grosbeaks has been described as sounding like “a robin with operatic training.” While it is possible to hear it here, most likely it will be more common to hear further to the north, east, or west in their breeding range.

Another possible feeder visitor is the Indigo bunting. These beautiful goldfinch sized birds are a summer resident in middle Tennessee and can often be found perched in trees on the edges of meadows or fields, singing to establish their territory. Gossett Tract in Pegram and the greenway trail in Edwin Warner are good places to spot Indigo buntings in the spring and early summer. We have seen these on feeders before, however they are more likely to be spotted feeding on the ground below the feeders.

Last but certainly not least, we will begin hearing the first reported sightings of hummingbirds as they begin to pass through in early April. By mid-April, sightings of hummingbirds will be more common. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t see any hummingbirds early on, as activity at feeders doesn’t really pick up until mid-July. As we tell folks, they didn’t travel all this way for sugar water! The reason these tiny travelers leave their winter homes in Central America is to reach their breeding grounds in eastern North America. After their breeding season concludes and they begin to fatten up for their migration back south, that’s when activity at the feeders will begin to pick up. That is why we see such a sharp uptick in feeder activity in late July, August, and into September.

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Early Spring Hummingbirds

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Every year at this time we regularly answer the question “when will the hummingbirds arrive?” and “when should I put out a feeder?”   The first reported sightings of Ruby-throated hummingbirds (RTH) in middle TN are just a few weeks away.  There are usually a few local sightings by the last week of March while the vast majority of RTH’s begin arriving or passing through between early April and mid-May.  Male hummingbirds tend to arrive ahead of females.   At my home in Cheatam Co. nearly 30 years of taking note of my first RTH sighting is between April 4th and 10th, and always an adult male. 

Some of these early arrivals may rest and feed for a day or two before continuing on their journey to their final destination, which may be as far as Canada.  Those that stay in mid-TN will then begin establishing territory, courting and nesting.  Their interest in feeders is minimal at this time.  Why?  Unless a hard freeze kills blooms and no flowers are available nature provides hummingbirds with everything they could possibly need, which is nectar from plants, and insects for protein.  The first hummingbirds to arrive at my home in Cheatham County usually spend more time at the Columbine blooms than at the feeder.  Early blooming perennials and native plants are a very important nectar source for hummingbirds.  People living in rural areas tend to see hummingbirds earlier and more often than people in more urban areas.  Why? The simple answer is rural areas provide better and more nesting habitat for hummingbirds.

Activiy from the peak part of the season in August.

Temper your expectations.  Do not expect to see a lot of activity early on.  We suggest putting out 1 or 2 feeders with small amounts of nectar the 1st week of April.  There is no need to put out a lot of feeders nor should you fill feeders to capacity.  There just isn’t that much feeding activity early on.  With the cool nights your nectar can last a little longer than in summer but do pay attention to the quality.  You should still change the nectar once or twice a week depending on temperatures.  Keep it fresh and the feeder clean.  This is very important to the health of the hummingbirds.   You must remember Ruby-throated hummingbirds do not need sugar water but only take advantage of it.  If the nectar is not in good condition they will find other sources.   

Hummers will come to feeders more frequently when they are ready and that typically occurs near the end of their breeding season.  Usually, late June to mid-July is when we see an increase in activity at feeders.  Most of the offspring from possibly 2 broods has fledged by then and as August arrives feeding activity will be at its busiest as adults and youngsters visit feeders and pack on weight and energy rich fat in preparation for the migration back.

It is certainly possible you may see a bird or two take advantage of the feeder before moving on to its final destination.   It is not true that if you don’t put out a feeder now you will miss them later in the summer.  Some people wait till July to put a feeder up, and have success.

The Best Solution for Hummingbird Nectar

The best nectar you can offer hummingbirds is a simple 1 part sugar to 4 parts water solution.  It is not necessary for the water to be brought to a boil before adding sugar unless you are making larger quantities for storage in the fridge.  The nectar is ready after the sugar has been stirred in and fully dissolved.  Do not add color in the form of food dye. Color is absolutely unnecessary and potentially harmful.  Also, DO NOT use natural raw sugar or honey.  Regular white table sugar is best.

Next week …The Grosbeaks are coming!

And Lights Out Nashville!

When and when not to help a baby bird

Each year as we enter the nesting season, we receive numerous phone calls from concerned customers who have found young birds and are unsure of what do next. Often, these young birds may not need help at all. Many fledglings spend time on the ground after leaving the nest, learning to fly and find food. This can sometimes be mistaken for a bird that has fallen out the nest early or a sick or injured bird.

As fans of birds we are always eager to help if we think a bird is seemingly in need, but the best thing to do if you find a bird you suspect may need help is to just observe the bird. Is it a fledgling that is mostly feathered? Or, is it a nestling that has very few feathers and may not have its eyes open yet? Unless a fledgling is showing signs of injury or is in immediate danger of predation the bird should be left alone. They are doing exactly what they need to be doing. If you find a nestling, there are a few different steps you can take before deciding to take it out of its environment and to a rehabilitator. Those steps and much more information can be found in this article on Audubon.org “When you should and should not rescue baby birds”

Our friends at Harmony Wildlife Rehabilitation also have a great website with lots of information on how to help wildlife. While researching this blog post I learned about young rabbits on their page on how to help baby rabbits.

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Wood Thrush Shop Notes

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Recent Feeder Activity

With the recent wintery weather a lot more birds have decided to visit feeding stations.  This week my feeders were frequented by over 50 Goldfinch at a time, a dozen or so Pine Siskin, over 20 Juncos (overwhelmingly males), and lots of White-throated sparrow. A few Red-winged Blackbirds appeared as did a few Grackles, birds I rarely see in my yard.

In weather like this I always anticipate something more unusual to appear, like Orange-crowned warbler, Ruby or Golden-crowned Kinglets, and Brown creeper to name a few, typically at the suet feeders.  One customer reported a lone Indigo Bunting which is very unusual to be seen in January. 

And with the freezing rain being forecast, which will likely have already occurred by the time you read this, birds that don’t normally visit feeding stations may recognize the bird activity at feeders and come in for a look.  My birdbaths, which have de-icer units in them, were extremely busy during the frigid temps.  Birds, of course need water sources even when it’s below freezing and will bathe to keep feathers clean and at their best insulating quality for survival. 

Many of you are surprised to see multiple Bluebirds visiting feeding stations and water sources.  Bluebirds are, of course, here year round and will travel about in small flocks in search of food and water. 

Seed Stock is Low for this Saturday

Because our seed supplier is located in Des Moines, IA sometimes weather will hold up our seed shipments as is the case this week.  Freight is backed up all across the U.S.   You may want to call first before you visit The Wood Thrush Shop on Saturday and Monday as we are low, or out of some choices of seed.  We are very well stocked with suet and live mealworms.  We anticipate receiving our load of seed early next week as temps rise to the 40’s. 

Next Week…The Great Backyard Bird Count

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