Showing off!

BBG & Furbalsmom, My hubby keeps bird feeders in our backyard or tries to. He says that he just doesn't believe that there is such a thing as a squirrel-proof bird feeder because every one we've ever had, the squirrels manage to get into. Sometimes, they will knock it to the ground to break it so they can get at the bird food. Do you have any trouble with squirrels getting into your bird feeders? Any suggestions? Thanks. Love the photos - truly beautiful.

We have very few squirrels around the lake we live on.

Our biggest problem is Stellar Jays, noisy, big jays that knock all the seed out of the feeder onto the ground. We have seen one Stellar Jay empty a gallon of seed from the feeder in 7 minutes.

Our best solution was placing 1/4 inch hardware cloth over the tray that holds the seed as it feeds from the container. All of the birds can come in and take some seeds, even the Jays, but the Jays can't sweep their beak back and forth to dump all the seeds to the ground.

AHH MAZING shots, BBG!!!

My "anti-squirrel" tactics include two black labs and my BB gun.

Now I need something that will keep the turkeys out of my yard! I won't send the dogs after them... or shoot them (although, it IS turkey season this month...). But MAN, they make a mess.

i was sitting at the table drinkin a coffie and not 1 or 2 but 4 rose breasted grosbeak males show up at the feeder the other half was floored when i told her ta come have a look see. guess we dont get them around here all that often,first i seen them sence i moved up here 4 years ago. 2 females have been to the feeders in the past couple of days. mus be a sign of spring tween them and the grackles and brown headed cowbirds and red winged black birds bout the only ones we had at the feeders all winter was chickadees finchs sparroos


boog

Furbalsmom wrote: (no camera dag nab it)

Dag nab it is right; I would have loved to see that.

We don't really see anything other than robins around here. Oh yeah and those gigantic crows. When I first moved here in '93, I used to see all kinds of blue jays and cardinals, but they seem to have disappeared. Maybe I can talk my Honey into letting me put some stuff up to attract more varieties.

xoxo
Cyne

The tree swallows have returned to the lake area and these poor babies are so busy flying around they don't even look where they are going. I have had three come into my semi enclosed porch today. They do not willingly land on the broom so we can gently direct them to go over by the door. If you remember, the hummingbird sat on the broom for us to take him to the door.

Stressed Tree Swallow


Sitting among the chive blossoms


Sitting on the empty seedling pots


The purple blue color on their backs is amazing

That last picture is outstanding! I love it!!

BackyardBirdGardner wrote:That last picture is outstanding! I love it!!

I agree. What is the name of that bird, or is that the tree swallow?

That picture is the tree swallow.

Today we had an Anna's Rufous Hummingbird that got into the semi enclosed porch. We ended up scooping it up in our hands and setting it in the rosemary bush where it sat a little stunned for a few minutes, then it flew away.
Frightened Anna's Roufus Hummingbird on the porch
Sitting on the window frame - can you see the pollen on it's nose? It was sipping from the flowering plants on the porch.
Resting before flying off

So cool Furbalsmom....I miss seeing hummers. We never saw them in AZ when I lived there but growing up in CA I saw them all the time.

I put out a feeder here last year hoping to attract some and never saw a one.

So far this spring all I see are robins. I see them hopping all through my boxes in the morning...I sure hope they are not eating my seeds.

I had my first hummer of the season yesterday. Seems awfully early. And I can't find my feeder!!!

got to see a baltimore oreio for first time yesterday while i was chatting on here a couple of males landed on a plastic selfing unit right outside my slider i grabed the camara hit the start button an see << LOW BATTERY>> GOODBYE click i was like @!$%&&^%$$#$#% off they flew soooooo the other half made me go buy oranges to set out an see if they come back batterys changed crossin my fingers.

boog

The day after I posted my Baltimore Oriole pictures the local newpaper printed a picture of them that someone from my town had sent in! I've had my pair here every day since then. They make a neat sound... kind of a trilling chirp.

I bought two more Peanut Doughs for my suet feeders AND some very berry ones. I put out one of each, thinking the Orioles might like the fruity ones better. They don't. They not even landing on that one!

Tril wrote:The day after I posted my Baltimore Oriole pictures the local newpaper printed a picture of them that someone from my town had sent in! I've had my pair here every day since then. They make a neat sound... kind of a trilling chirp.

I bought two more Peanut Doughs for my suet feeders AND some very berry ones. I put out one of each, thinking the Orioles might like the fruity ones better. They don't. They not even landing on that one!

The Orioles like the humming bird feeders. My daughter fills one with the red humming bird food and one with the orange oriole food but both types of birds use both feeders.

We won't see orioles here in southern California til july or august.

Awesome shot of that hummer. Your window is providing a great backdrop for all those trapped buddies.

I am getting ready to try with Hummingbirds this spring/summer. I am currently plotting the best location for the feeder. I want something that will both blurr and freeze the wings when they feed....and is right outside my window.

For those of you looking to observe birds in the backyard...

If you put a feeder close to a window, try and keep it less than about 6 feet. Why? So, they don't kill themselves when startled by flying right into the window....and they will. I have several hit my windows all the time. Just this Saturday morning, while relaxing with the wife, the window got peppered by birdies. The fledglings are still learning to fly...lol. The regulars know where the windows are. But, they will not pay a lot of attention when a Cooper's Hawk buzzes the feeders. They will see sunshine and fly right into a window.

I got a chance to shoot today and yesterday afternoon. Here are the better ones so far this week...

Peter my White-breasted Nuthatch


Mrs. Pujols
Being that I live in St. Louis, the dominant couple is appropriately named Sir Albert and Mrs. Pujols, but I have three pairs that fight over the feeders..


Woody my Downy Woodpecker I also have three pairs of Downies this spring...


Black-capped Chickadee I was so close on this one, but I still think it's super cool timing. If you look, his head is out of focus ever so slightly.

i need ta ask what kinda camara do u use?? 35mm? the pics are a HE!! alot chrisper than that digital thing i got, but it aint nuttin ta brag about either think i payed 20 bucks for it.


boog

just after that last post the small one landed on the shepard's hook here's two pics

Yes, it's sort of 35mm. I jumped into the digital age a couple of years back before my family took the kids on their "real" first summer vacation to Myrtle Beach. I wasn't going to miss that, or take subpar pictures with my experience. I knew I wanted better, saved the money, and bought the camera.

It's still not a huge investment for photography, though. It's a Canon EOS Rebel XSi. About $600 for the body and first "kit" lens (18-55mm). That gets me my landscape/scenery shots and most of my portraits of the kids. But, I am a huge sports guy, bird guy, and action guy. So, I knew I needed more "reach." I also sprung for the second "kit" lens (55-250mm). Again, it's not what I dream about, but the setup works really well for my needs....and budget.

The whole outfit, with battery, charger, memory card, card reader, bag, etc, ran me just under $1000. It was a bite out of the tooshy, but it's been so worth it.

Watch out for Josh, too. He is learning the hobby and doing really well with his mom's camera. If anyone is interested, I would encourage you to learn the basics of how these cameras work. It isn't rocket science, and these days the cameras do a lot of the work for you. Not at all like when I shot black/white film for my father's newspaper back in the day (early 90s...lol). So much has changed, and we have ALL gotten better as a result.

It's such a fun hobby when you know a little more than the average Joe.

Oh, and all you guys with your Orioles are KILLING me. I'd almost give my right arm to have one in my yard. I just don't see many of them around here.....and I know they are around. Love seeing everyone else's bird shots, too.

i do have a 35mm with 3 differant len's an flash i jus need ta get the book out an learn how to use it sad part about is bein it uses film a shots a shot no matter how it turns out the digidal if i hate the pic jus delete it.


boog

boog1 wrote:i do have a 35mm with 3 differant len's an flash i jus need ta get the book out an learn how to use it sad part about is bein it uses film a shots a shot no matter how it turns out the digidal if i hate the pic jus delete it.


boog

I have two old 35mm's I used to use. Once the digital era hit, I stopped using them, too. It's just easier to get a decent picture right instead of having to wait until the film comes back from processing. I went almost 8 years only using digital point and shoots....and was relatively happy with what I was doing. However, that trip changed my mindset completely....about ME having the control over the shots. I want as much control as I can get.

When I first looked into MY type of camera, in the digital era, they were running in the thousands! They also had CDs in them instead of memory cards. The barrier to entry was just too high. It's still high, but it's low enough I decided to save for it. I have never been happier with my results. But, obviously, it's not something everyone is willing to do. All about personal choice.

If you want a fun idea, that's less expensive, google "digiscoping" and do some poking around with that technique. I've seen some incredible images using that method, too.

helps if your subject is a tad closer that orange half was 20 feet away now its only 4 still hada zoom in allthe way thats a female baltimore oriole if anybody dos'nt know

It makes a huge difference! Not that the other shot is bad, but these are better. Bringing the subject in, especially when it's rather small, is really important. As a photographer, amatuer or otherwise, your job is to lead the viewer's eye to the point you want them to see. One way to do this is to "fill the frame" with your subject. It's the primary technique I use with birds. There is nothing else around to distract you from seeing what I want you to see....the bird.

My feeders are ridiculously close to my house.....like 6 feet. I have them that way so I can shoot small birds with my lens and have them filling the frame without me having to crop too much out in the computer. The more you crop out, the lower the quality of your image most times. It tends to get fuzzy.

I know plenty of guys that hand feed their backyard birds. That way, the birds are so close they are easy to take pictures of. But, hand training wild birds obviously takes time. Time I use for my garden, this forum, or other hobbies I have. Oh, and family....lol.

Keep shooting, and keep sharing, guys. This is becoming one of my favorite threads here.

Ok BackyardBirdGardener I have one that's not on your list, It's not very close, It flew over the garden and landed at the top of a big tree. I took the photo at 100 feet away. After I cropped it, and lightened the photo a bit, you can see the bird fairly good.



A Buzzard!

Buzzards have their place in the food chain, but they definitely have a face only its mother could love!

pattipan