 |
|
Feed Your Feathered Friends! 
Winter is here, and the 'locals' would love to have some healthy food to stave off the cold. Swansons carries a solid line of Cole's Bird and Critter feed to satisfy all your northwest avian friends. Come in and check out the Droll Yankees Bird Feeders! They have a Life-time warranty and we stock the most popular styles for bird species in the northwest. Whether you want to attract bright Goldfinches, rambunctious Stellar jays, Juncos or the always popular Chickadee - we have the feeder for you! |
| ||
|
Attracting Birds to Your Garden Attracting birds to my garden in the winter months is extremely entertaining. As the weather cools down many birds will migrate from the higher elevations to the Puget Sound basin increasing the number of varieties of birds for us to enjoy. The best way to attract our fluttering friends is to have several different styles of bird feeders and to have them at different heights. Many birds will not visit a feeder if it is too far out in the open so place some near bushes and trees. My favorite style of bird feeder is the platform feeder. You can buy platform feeders though the favorite one in my yard is simply a decorative pot about 20” in diameter placed upside down. Finch feeders and seed hoppers are also important for some varieties of birds prefer those over a platform feeder. During the winter months it is also a good idea to offer birds some suet. (Suet is usually a blend of lard and seed.) My favorite visitor to my suet cage is the Common Flicker, a beautiful woodpecker with a mostly grey head, brown wings with black stripes, cinnamon color over its eyes and a red patch on its throat. After visiting the suet cage he will typically jump around my lawn searching for ants and other insects to munch on. Many other birds such as chickadees and finches also like the suet. Though humming birds eat less nectar and more insects during the winter months they do still appreciate sipping nectar from my humming bird feeders. To complement your humming bird feeder during this time you may want to plant some winter blooming Camellias and the beautiful winter blooming Mahonias for additional nectar and a place to find insects to help complete their diet. Remember to frequently clean out your humming bird feeder for humming birds are very finicky and will stop visiting if the nectar gets too old. Using
some or all of these feeders will bring you and your family
a lot of joy and amusement and at the same time help get
our feathered friends through a cold and harsh winter.   | |||
| |||
|
Popular bird-related websites: http://www.audubon.org/states/flashMap.php List of US states and local chapters. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology site is a wealth of information with several opportunities for the backyard birder to act as a Citizen Scientist and collect data for them. North American Bluebird Society Operation
Rubythroat | |||
Hummingbirds are still here!
 |