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Converted from paper version of the Broad Ripple Gazette (v05n02)
Right in my Own Backyard - Just Give Me Bird Feeders for Winter Fun - by Brandt Carter
posted: Jan. 18, 2008

Right in my Own Backyard header

Just Give Me Bird Feeders for Winter Fun
I don't need television or the internet to be entertained. I have bird feeders just outside my bedroom window. Settling into pillows for five minutes of bird watching, I can easily while away an hour with all the activity.
In the winter months, the titmouse and juncos are seasonal visitors. The titmouse's soft gray crest and peach-blushed breast remind me of its distant cousin, the cardinal. The deep gray junco stands out as it searches the ground for unbroken seeds, often feeding next to mourning doves and sparrows. This is why I like to have millet in my seed blend so that foragers can find morsels under feeders. I also keep one feeder filled with a special bird seed mix that appeals to sparrows and house finches.
Cardinals never cease to capture my awe. The vivid red males and tawny brown females pair up as couples that are my winners in the bird kingdom's "Dancing with the Stars." I giggle when a cardinal soars up to the feeder and slams into a squirrel's nose. A male cardinal retrieving a sunflower seed and gently taking it to his mate touches my heart with this tender act of relationship.
It seems woodpeckers seek my feeders more in the winter. Suet, whether from the grocery meat counter or a commercially made cake with seed and berries, attracts downey, hairy, red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers. I know the recognizable "Woody Woodpecker" (the pileated) is in our neighborhood, but I'm still waiting for one to show up at my feeders. Meanwhile, I'm fascinated with red-bellied woodpeckers. The blush of red on their belly is a shade I have yet to mix with my paint brush, but each time I spot it, I try to record the color in my mind's eye.
If you have not fed birds before, I invite you to open your backyard to the world of nature. All you have to do is offer seed, fruit and/or water. You will be amazed at the hours of relaxation and enjoyment this brings.



Brandt Carter, artist, herbalist, and naturalist, owns Backyard Birds at 2374 E. 54th Street. Visit her web site www.feedbackyardbirds.com. Email your bird questions to Brandt@BroadRippleGazette.com




brandt@broadripplegazette.com
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