The Uncaged Bird - Ready for Spring!

I’m posting here, even though they’re mammals not birds - hey, they fly and they fly enormous distances, and people who read here sometimes seem to be the main ones paying attention. 

It turns out our ‘flying foxes‘ are more spectacular creatures than the mere bat-like stereotype that meets your eye. The subjects of this study were observed flying from the south of our continent to the north, and back again - and yet people have always said they rarely leave home-ground. (I think the distance is almost like flying from Vancouver to the Mexican border? Further?)
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-27/new-study-on-flying-foxes-and-their-nomadic-habits/12597246


joanne said:

I’m posting here, even though they’re mammals not birds - hey, they fly and they fly enormous distances, and people who read here sometimes seem to be the main ones paying attention. 

It turns out our ‘flying foxes‘ are more spectacular creatures than the mere bat-like stereotype that meets your eye. The subjects of this study were observed flying from the south of our continent to the north, and back again - and yet people have always said they rarely leave home-ground. (I think the distance is almost like flying from Vancouver to the Mexican border? Further?)
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-27/new-study-on-flying-foxes-and-their-nomadic-habits/12597246

 I love them.


Hummingbirds will begin fattening up for the long journey in the next few weeks. Please keep feeders clean and filled.


Those cygnets!  question rolleyes Definite ‘swan’ necks now, with that little flexi-bend in the middle, and real feathers instead of fluff. The feathers are grey and look scruffy nearly all the time, because the chicks (early teens) are mostly in the water or in mud, lying in wet puddles in a new, small nest-island closer to the front gate. I think it’s quieter there, despite Smokers’ Table and brief traffic; the surrounding homes are owned by very elderly residents. 
We tried to take a couple of pics of the family walking on the grass there, but the car behind us tooted...


Based on the hummer frenzy in my yard, I think they are fattening up to leave soon - 3 kids eating Lantana, Fuschia, Cardinal Flower, Angelonia and at the 3 feeders.




lynnl199 said:

Based on the hummer frenzy in my yard, I think they are fattening up to leave soon - 3 kids eating Lantana, Fuschia, Cardinal Flower, Angelonia and at the 3 feeders.



 I had difficulty with Cardinal Flower. Were you able to get it to come back?

I haven't planted Lantana in years and I'll give Angelonia a try to see if both the deer and the woodchucks pass them by.


I have had Cardinal flower come back and it gets taller in the second year. They actually found my newer, shorter ones which to me visually we’re obscured by hardy hibiscus- it is good I am not a bird!

I have several hanging baskets with the Lantana. The Angelonia were a surprise to me( they were in a kitchen window box).

Morganna said:

 I had difficulty with Cardinal Flower. Were you able to get it to come back?

I haven't planted Lantana in years and I'll give Angelonia a try to see if both the deer and the woodchucks pass them by.

 


lynnl199 said:

 

 I'm going to give Cardinal Flower another try then!

Do you hang a feeder as well?

I'm very happy with the Humzinger. (First picture)

The old kind with the inverted glass got mold quickly due to the exposure to direct sunlight.


Sighting of the rare Swift Parrot:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-09/swift-parrot-sighting-creates-buzz-for-birdwatchers/12639418

It’s so pretty! We’ve noticed a paucity in lorrikeet numbers this season; my Melbourne friends have grumbled that too many are down there, mating and raising babies. We’re guessing the better rainfall/better blossoming native trees have attracted the greenies as well as the butterflies, moths and grasshoppers. 

I’ve noticed two jet-black Little Cormorants visiting, this morning. I couldn’t take a clear pic, unfortunately. Very sleek. 


Great research on stork travels (not Australia)

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/01/scientists-use-satellite-tags-to-reveal-white-storks-migratory-habits

This is the White Stork Project, from the UK. Really surprising, the countries these birds fly to. Reading the project report is like armchair travelling.


Is anyone still seeing Hummers? Its been quiet at the feeder. The flowers are missing their friends.


Last spotting of our Lorelei was last Thursday.


Morganna said:

Is anyone still seeing Hummers? Its been quiet at the feeder. The flowers are missing their friends.

 One came to my feeder yesterday.   I’m glad that I left my feeder up.  


... just showed up in our yard.


Might have a domestic bird of some kind showing up at the Fallen Oaks Manor birdie buffet. I couldn't get a great look at it (and I'm colorblind) but there was no mistaking the really bright yellow - totally stands out from anything I've ever seen in the wild - head. Seemed a little bigger than the sparrows but maybe closer to a cardinal's size. This is the closest image I could find with a quick search.

I hope you're okay, little guy. Stop by any time you want.

ETA: I went out to adjust one of the feeders and replace the water bath and yup, it is something really close to this kind of bird. He let me walk up to about 6 feet away before flying off. All the other birds had vacated long before that. 

I wonder what the best approach would be here. Has anyone in the area lost one of these little birdies?


What a cute budgie! Got any wild parrot seed? They also love dried sweet sultanas and currants, and chopped pieces of apple. (They’re known for getting drunk on overripe tropical fruit and grapes!)


bikefixed said:

Might have a domestic bird of some kind showing up at the Fallen Oaks Manor birdie buffet. I couldn't get a great look at it (and I'm colorblind) but there was no mistaking the really bright yellow - totally stands out from anything I've ever seen in the wild - head. Seemed a little bigger than the sparrows but maybe closer to a cardinal's size. This is the closest image I could find with a quick search.

I hope you're okay, little guy. Stop by any time you want.

ETA: I went out to adjust one of the feeders and replace the water bath and yup, it is something really close to this kind of bird. He let me walk up to about 6 feet away before flying off. All the other birds had vacated long before that. 

I wonder what the best approach would be here. Has anyone in the area lost one of these little birdies?

 I love parakeets!  Too bad you can't catch him. I was imagining setting out a large cage. Wonder if Petco or Petsmart would have any ideas. I've had birds and always let them fly around. I'd care for a budgie if he was caught.


Did you read about this incredible flight?? Alaska to New Zealand in only ELEVEN DAYS!! NONSTOP!!!

A godwit! (I’d never heard of them before)

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/13/jet-fighter-godwit-breaks-world-record-for-non-stop-bird-flight


HELP NEEDED!

We have a small bird- sparrow?- trapped in our living room !

How can we catch and release?

I'll x-post to Please Help thread

Thanks


I usually close everything except the window I want the bird to exit through, leaving that open without a fly screen blocking it. Turn off the lights and leave the room, if possible, so all is quiet. Bird should leave on its own when it feels safe. You might need a soft little light (like a torch?) somewhere outside the window to show it the way. (It generally hasn’t taken too long, just a couple of hours at most)


Apollo_T said:

HELP NEEDED!

We have a small bird- sparrow?- trapped in our living room !

How can we catch and release?

I'll x-post to Please Help thread

Thanks

 Is it injured? If not can you open a window? If injured I would call Raptor Trust for expert advice.


I’m wondering if it’s still there...? It’s now many many hours later


Resolved per post in the please help thread.


A beautiful account of backyard and local birdwatching. You might learn about a couple of new species we take for granted: 

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/oct/23/i-wondered-how-many-birds-i-could-count-in-my-melbourne-backyard-and-asked-others-to-do-the-same 
Remember, his/our swans are black cheese

I was with a friend yesterday, enjoying coffee at the local mall. We sat riverside but inside the mall, and chatted - I looked up across the water just in time to see two swans pull into the little sandy beach in front of the house opposite, and walk up to their back lawn to munch on some blades of grass!! They were escorted by a small flotilla of gulls and ducks that scuttled around the shallows and sand.

Bird perch maintenance matters:  does anyone have a good cleaner for poop, please? Something that makes it easier to clean off the next lot? My painted balcony/deck edge is a mess no matter how often I clean it. 


Such lovely fun!  question

I’ve spent a bit of time on this Atlas site, exploring current backyard sightings. Here’s the link showing the 372 bird species in the roughly 3miles around my address. You can also set the results for animals and flora

https://biocache.ala.org.au/explore/your-area#-27.9097|153.3867|12|Birds

If for some reason it comes up blank, type in 368 Oxley Dr, Coombabah 4216

You’ll find all the wallabies listed under Mammals. So are ‘antechinus’:

https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/07/07/3262428.htm


Am I bad?

I have been noodling around with designs for suet feeders as well as thwarting squirrels' access to said suet. I think I've gotten the access part down - I have suspended the feeder from an overhanging tree branch with picture hanging wire that squirrels are reluctant to climb down.

I have been trying out different designs that ward off starlings and other bullies by not having perches for them and not using a cage they could grab. I've made 1" drill holes that I stuff with suet. So far I haven't had that much traffic on this one but it might be the low weight of the thing. It swings a bit in the breeze. I've seen a downy woodpecker on it a couple of times but it hasn't been cleaned out in two days.

So now I'm experimenting with suet recipes. I made my first batch tonight and I thought I'd also make cakes that squirrels would still have easy access to from a cage on a tree trunk. I loaded the mix up with a lot of cayenne powder and some leftover paprika. Birds do not have receptors that those compounds stimulate so it doesn't bother as far as ornithologists can tell. It is not so fun for squirrels so we'll see what happens tomorrow.

And that brings up my dilemma. I don't want something that they immediately know is not their jam. I would like something that has a delayed onset. Kind of like pepper that has a "late" arrival of the heat. I want that squirrel to load up a little before they get the message. 'Cuz to hell with them fekkin' skwurlz.


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