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Wednesday, April 14, 2010
You probably won’t see any of the Baltimore Orioles in Canada until May. The Journey North website studies migration patterns of the Baltimore Oriole, Ruby-throated hummingbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, and other birds and mammals. You can look at the past seasons to predict upcoming visits or watch the Spring 2010 maps as people report their sightings of birds on the way north.
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Most Baltimore orioles winter in Central and South America and begin the journey north to their breeding grounds in April. They prefer to nest in open forests such as those along rivers, small woodlots, fruit orchards, or even large yards with lots of flowering fruit and nut trees. Orioles eat a variety of fruits, nectar, bugs, and nuts. The best way to attract orioles to your yard is with feeders that offer suet, nuts, mealworms, nectar, grape jelly, or fruit (oranges, grapes, apples).
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If you have an extra suet feeder, I thought Droll Yankees was clever to suggest it could be used as fruit holder.
I also recommend two other feeders made by Bird's Choice. My favorite oriole feeder and the one we sell the most of in our mid-Michigan Wild Birds Unlimited stores offers three ways in to attract orioles: nectar, oranges, and jelly. The sugar water is in the saucer (orioles like the same 4 parts water to one part sugar recipe as the hummingbirds), the jelly goes into little jelly troughs built into the cover and the orange goes down the middle hook of the feeder. It's easy to clean, easy to fill and attracts lots of orioles. The weather guard that is pictured with this feeder on the right is sold separately.
The second feeder I recommend is the Poly-lumber feeder made from recycled milk jugs. It has lifetime guarantee to never crack, split or fade, stainless steel screws, thick, heavy-duty acrylic roof to allow Orioles to see the food and protects it from rain, and two removable cups to dispense grape jelly (Orioles’ favorite jelly flavor) and two pegs for orange halves. Cups also may be used to feed mealworms, peanuts, chopped fruit, suet nuggets, and a variety of other foods..
And don’t forget the water. Having water available is a good way to attract a variety of birds to your yard. If you combine water with the appropriate food and habitat your opportunity to attract wild birds will be enhanced greatly.
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Two websites I found with further information on orioles are: Journey North Oriole info and All About Birds. If anyone has any other suggestions, post them below on the comments. Wild Birds Unlimited also has a store in Guelph, Ontario. Their website shows a variety of fruit feeders. I hope that helps. You have to be patient and change the food or nectar frequently even if it hasn't been touched. Good luck.
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