Everyone has heard the phrase “diving into something head first”, but not the Nuthatch!

White-breasted Nuthatch

It’s a way of life! The Nuthatch gets its name from its unusual habit of jamming large nuts into tree bark, then whacking at them with their sharp bill to “hatch” out the seed from the inside. The White-breasted Nuthatch is the largest of all species of Nuthatches in the United States and lives here year round. White-breasted Nuthatch’s have a black-capped head with a grayish-blue color on their back and a snowy while face and belly.

Even though their colors are distinguishable, a Nuthatch’s behavior is what sets them apart. Different from other birds, Nuthatches often turn sideways and upside-down on trees and limbs as they forage for food. Usually, Nuthatches will start at the top of trees and barrel their way head-first down while scavenging for food.

Nuthatches live and primarily can be found around mature woods and woodland edges, usually traveling with their mate. In winter, Nuthatches join foraging flocks led by Chickadees and Titmice as another security source to look out for potential predators. One recent study found that when Titmice were removed from the flock, Nuthatches were more wary and less willing to eat at exposed bird feeders.

A Nuthatch’s main food source is insects like beetles and ants, but they are also regulars at most folk’s backyards. You most likely will spot one snacking on a suet feeder, peanut feeder, or even a regular bird feeder because they also eat sunflower seeds. Some of the feeders I have had luck with and would recommend would be the Songbird Essentials Suet Log and any of the Songbird Essentials Spiral Peanut feeders. These make it easy for them to cling upside-down.

Red Spiral Peanut Feeder Click on Photo

Suet Log Feeder Click on Photo

Green Spiral Peanut Feeder Click On Photo

Silver Spiral Peanut Feeder Click On Photo

Suet Feeder with Tail Prop Click on Photo

Recylced Plastic Hanging Gazebo Feeder Click on Photo

Gingo Teahouse Feeder Click on Photo

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Molting Cardinal Photo by David Van Auken, Baldwinsville, NY

Answer: No, what you are seeing is the Cardinals going through “molt.” This is when they shed their feathers and grow new ones.

For a while even a stately Cardinal is a big, ugly, sickly looking bird. But never fear! They’ll regain their former brightness. Do remember that many males brighten up “just for mating season.” Many other birds such as the Goldfinch, are starting to dull up so they fade into more bleak winter landscapes and thus are not easy targets for predators. Isn’t just amazing in how all of these changes take place every year!

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Flicker on suet cage

calories and protein which they can get from suet. Suet is raw beef fat. It is used to make everything from candles to Christmas puddings. Bird suet is a high energy formulation of animal fat and other ingredients to attract insect eating birds. It is a quick source of heat and energy for birds, whose metabolisms are set on fast forward. Traditionally it has been used as a good substitute for the insects that birds usually feed upon, but are not plentiful in cold weather. Suet can be presented all year long.

Dartsmouth Suet Cage with Chain & S Hook

You can purchase suet from our website or you can make your own. Here are some suet

Nutty Treat Peanut Butter Suet Cake

Soft Suet Cakes

4 1/2 cups ground fresh suet

3/4 cup dried and fine ground bakery goods

(whole-wheat or cracked-wheat bread or crackers are best)

1/2 cup shelled sunflower seeds

1/4 cup millet

1/4 cup dried and chopped fruit (currants, raisins, or berries)

3/4 cup dried and fine ground meat (optional)

1. Melt suet in a saucepan over low heat.
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Allow the suet to cool until slightly thickened, then stir it into the mixture in the bowl. Mix thoroughly.
4. Pour or pack into forms or suet feeders; smear onto tree trunks or overhanging limbs and branches; or pack into pine cones.

Hard Suet Cakes

1/2 lb. fresh ground suet

1/3 cup sunflower seed

2/3 cup wild bird seed (mix)

1/8 cup chopped peanuts

1/4 cup raisins

1. Melt suet in a saucepan over low heat. Allow it to cool thoroughly, then reheat it.
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Allow the suet to cool until slightly thickened, then stir it into the mixture in the bowl. Mix thoroughly.
4. Pour into pie pan or form, or pack into suet feeders.

Optional or substitute ingredients: millet (or other birdseed), cornmeal, cooked noodles, chopped berries, dried fruit.

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Where ever you live in the USA there’s at least one species of hummingbird that will make your yard more interesting.    If you live in the Southwest you will get the lion’s share.

I feel that hummingbirds are the single most interesting bird to attract to your yard.  They are beautiful, their flight patterns are unique, and they make very unusual sounds which announce their presence.

They make a squeaky, chittery noise that sounds more like mice than birds as they perch and fly.  Their wings make noise, too, somewhat like a small industrial sewing machine.  During their courtship routine, they make a vrooming noise, somewhat like a child mimicking the sound of a jet airplane.  If God had given them the gift of song, they would be perfect!

Their behavior is aggressive, consistent and predictable.

Hummingbirds follow the food.  Wherever there’s an inviting supply of nectar flowers, the birds will be buzzing.  As nectar feeders gained in popularity in recent years, the hummers have shifted their migration patterns and species have begun to show up in new territories.  By keeping feeders available during the winter and early spring, you might keep them year round!  Go to Garden Accent Heaven for the best priced, highest quality, and greatest variety of hummingbird feeders.

Fall and winter are perfect times to plan the longest growing season of hummingbird plant magnets.  High nectar content is the first principle, and then choose red-orange, red, and orange flowers that are a tubular shaped.  Bees will also be attracted to many of the same type flowers.  Read on for some helpful hints.

Hummers also eat tiny insects and spiders.  They use the spider webs to make their nests so it is good to have webs about your yard for them to gather.

Providing water for them is highly recommended.  Spend the amount needed to purchase a bird bath with a mister just for your hummers. (Link to our site) They love the fine spray.  You can even add a timer and the hummers will learn the time settings and be waiting for their bath! And you will know when  the show will begin!

Now let’s talk about which plants to put in your yard.  Choose tubular shaped flowers, those with a flaring rim above a long tube that attaches to the stem.  Tubular flowers are inaccessible to other pollinators so that the hummers are assured of a reward when they visit them.  Example:  daisy type flowers have high nectar but all insects can get to them.  Some bees will get in to some of the tubular but the hummers and bees have a pretty good team approach .

You will want to plant perennials, annuals, vines, shrubs and small trees thus providing the widest range of choices and the longest growing season.   Following are the most common plants that will grow in most areas of the USA.  With a bit more effort on your winter reading, you will find more plants specific to your region.

Click here to see an excellent PPS special Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air.

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Geese in Flite photo by Threedonia.com

wings, it creates uplift for the bird following. In a V formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% more flying range than if each bird flew alone. Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying of trying to fly alone and quickly get back into formation. When a goose get tired, it rotates back into the formation and another goose fliers at the point position. Geese in the rear of the formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. When a goose gets sick or wounded, two other geese drop out of the formation and follow it down to help and provide protection. They stay with the unhealthy member of the flock until it is either able to fly again or dies. Then they launch out again with another passing flock or try to catch up with their own.

Geese in Formation Photo by Alex T. Peltier. Click on photo for more of Alex's photos

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One of the first questions of any avid bird watcher is, “How do I attract and feed the “good” birds (Cardinals, Finches, and Clingers) while keeping away the “bad” (Grackles, Blackbirds) and especially the “ugly” (Starlings, Sparrows)?” While it’s almost impossible to totally eliminate a sighting of the “bad” or “ugly” in your back yard, there are a few good defense tactics out there to keep the unwanted visitors away. The tactics involve choosing the right type of seed to feed, using the right type of feeders, as well as other preventative methods.

Choose the right bird food

The first, simple way to attract good birds and discourage the bad and the ugly is by choosing the right type

Upside down suet feeder

of seed to feed. The two best types of seed known to discourage the bad and ugly birds are black oil sunflower and, my personal favorite, safflower. While neither is a 100 percent solution, both are loved by most songbirds and are at the bottom of the dining list for the bad and ugly. Another feeding solution is to stop feeding seeds that contain miller, milo, or cracked corn. The bad and the ugly birds love to pick through and eat it from the seed mixes and most songbirds won’t even eat it at all. If you already are a mixed seed feeder, no problem, the simple solution is to use bird feeders designed for songbirds and to fight the bad and the ugly. Also, try eliminating all ground feeding as it is a favorite hangout spot for the bad and ugly to eat.

Choose the right bird feeder

Clingers Only Feeder

Another effective way to attract good birds while discouraging the bad and the ugly is by using the right type of bird feeder. There are many feeders out there designed specifically for songbirds, but these are a few of my favorites. I, myself, am a big Chickadee and Titmouse fan. One of my favorite feeders, which they seem to love, is the Clinger Only Feeder. I like it because it is small, easy to fill, and has a small clinging area which not only make it Blackbird proof, but is also rarely can be used by Sparrows. If you are a Woodpecker or Nuthatch lover, try using an upside-down suet feeder. Suet is one of the main foods that attract your larger bad and ugly birds, but neither like to hand upside down, so they simply won’t eat from it. A good one to use is the Songbird Essentials upside-down suet feeder. It is made from recycled plastic so it is good for the environment. It also is very durable and come with a lifetime warranty. If your backyard is already set with feeders, try shortening the perches on your tube feeders. Smaller birds will still be able to cling, but larger birds will not.

When all else fails

The last effective way to get rid of the ugly birds is to use prevention methods involving the elimination of all together. Some might consider this inhumane,

Sparrow Trapthem

but it is necessary to help secure the safety of our native birds’ futures. For example, the growth of the non-native English Starling has had a huge negative impact on birds like the migratory Purple Martin. When Purple Martins are away from their nests, Starling will go in and invade the nest and destroy any eggs or young they find inside. Starlings have also been known to trap and kill an adult Martin if it is in its cavity. Another example of the destruction non-native bird species have caused is the Bluebird decline caused by House Sparrows. House Sparrows not only destroy the Bluebird’s eggs, they also kill the adult and young birds by attacking them inside their next boxes with their hooked beaks. One way to eliminate them is what I like to call “the old-fashioned way”, and that is just using a pellet gun. Before going with this approach, make sure you are very careful of your back stop, as well as having the gun set to the appropriate power. You also should have a pair of binoculars on hand, to make sure you properly ID the bird before you shoot. The “ugly” birds are considered pests and are legal to kill, the “bad” birds I mentioned before are still native so they are illegal to kill. If the old-fashion way isn’t for you, try using a sparrow trap around one of your bird houses, or in close proximity to some of your feeders. Inside of the trap you will need to place bread or scrap to attract Starling and Sparrows. You will need to check the trap regularly, as songbirds occasionally get attracted and trapped inside too. A good, effective trap to have is the Sparrow trap from Songbird Essentials. I would consider this a must have for anyone who has a Purple Martin house and wants to effectively proven the Purple Martin colony from being negatively affected by non-native birds. Although nothing is a total fix for preventing the bad and ugly birds from hanging around your backyard, the tips above have seen and used effectively as tools for keeping the bad and ugly away from backyards.

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Male & Female Bushtits - Derric Batchburn Photo

They are easy to identify so I learned about them early on.  When Bob and I are out walking, I can hear the bushtits chirping merrily in their soft, high pitched continuous calls.  In the bushes of native settings, they are feeding on soft-bodied insets and small spiders.

Feeding on insets and spiders make them welcome guests to my yard!  They will love your suet, too.

Bushtits are easy to see as they flock to the bushes and around the neighborhood.   Just

Bushtits on Suet Feeder - Scott Catron Photo

4 ½ inches long with a third of that  tail, medium  gray above and light gray below.  Because of their communal behavior, they get my attention quickly as they come to my suet feeders in large quantities, 10, 20 or more at a time.  Their quick movements are charming as well.

Further study has revealed that bushtits are one of the most communal of all North American birds.  Even the unmated males and females contribute to the success of other nesting pairs.

When one bushtit spots a food source, like a suet feeder, it will immediately begin calling to others and shortly, the feeder can have many chirping bushtits.  It only takes an alarm call from one bird, given at the first sign of danger, to send them all fluttering off in various directions until the coast is clear.

Male Bushtit - Photo by Derrick Dutchburn

Staying in flocks is helping each other find food and keeps them safer from predators.   Even the act of scattering in many directions when one sounds an alarm is a technique of safety:  the predator can be momentarily confused about which one to follow and that moment can save a bushtits life.

Get acquainted with these charming birds!  They are common in many woodlands.

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American Goldfinch

You can enjoy bright yellow goldfinches’ by putting out fresh nyjer thistle.  Finches like to feed in flocks, so have plenty of feeder space available for them. I have a friend who tells me that almost every time he looks out, nearly all 24 feeding slots on his Finches Favorite 3 Tube Copper Bird Feeder are full of Goldfinches.  The same is true for my 36” Yellow Spiral Finch Tube Feeder. Another less expensive way to feed more Finches while they’re brightly colored is to put out several of our inexpensive Songbird Essentials thistle socks. Go for the Gold “Finches” and enjoy the show.

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Photo by Uttar Pradesh

the Caribbean and Central and South America. IMBD celebrates and brings attention to one of the most important events in North and South America – bird migration.

IMBD was begun by the staff of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. The first event was held at the National Zoo in Washington, DC in 1993. The aviary experts at the Smithsonian figured they would bring attention to the plight of migratory birds and give the public the opportunity to learn about migratory species, the threats facing them and ways to help in their conservation.

Events to celebrate migratory birds are held thought out the United States and Canada during the month of May. To find an event near you, check out the interactive map at BirdDay.org. According to the BirdLifeInternational, nearly 200 species of birds are currently considered critically endangered. Nearly 80% of migratory birds species are affected by by two key pressures: Agriculture, which can result in habitat destruction, and biological resource use, the umbrella under which falls threats like deforestation and environmentally unsustainable hunting practices.  You can learn more at Birdday.org.

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