Home › Archives for January 2013

Photo Share: House Wren

House Wren Fun Facts• Breeding from Canada southward to the southern tip of South America, the House Wren has one of the largest ranges of any bird found in the New World. /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes;...
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Choosing a seed blend to feed wild birds

I need some help in choosing a bird seed blend ~ East Lansing, MIWhen choosing a seed blend to feed wild birds I always make sure sunflower is the first ingredient. I also like seed blends with nuts. Sunflower seed is the favorite of most seed eating birds like cardinals, finches and titmice and the peanuts will attract...
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Northern Cardinal Mating Rituals

I've had a steady colony of Cardinals coming to my feeder for the past six years. They live in the pines in my front yard and all spend time at the feeder in the back yard. Their number has grown from two pairs to three and now to four over these few years. Imagine my surprise that just now I looked out to see NINE pairs....
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Strange Feather Variation: Red and white cardinal

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Hello, would you please help me identify this species of Cardinal (?) or bird in the following pictures. I have never seen a Cardinal quite like this. It was eating from the bird feeder with the other Cardinals and other birds. This particular...
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Finch feeder that doesn't lose seed.

We have recently put out a golden finch feeder that is about 18 inches tall and 3 inches in diameter with 6 perches. We are thrilled that it is being heavily populated but am wondering if I need to get a second feeder because there are so many finches that they are fighting for the perches. Is this normal? Also, they sure...
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Sharp-shinned vs Cooper’s Hawks

A sharp-shinned hawk?  I heard an odd noise and looked outside - he's maybe four feet from the window and looks quite cozy.  We get Cooper's hawks from time to time, but never this close to the house. ~ Kate from East Lansing, MIThey are indeed excellent photos of a Sharp-shinned Hawk! The heavier streaking down...
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Celebrate Michigan's birthday with some fun facts

On January 26, 1837, President Andrew Jackson signed a bill making Michigan the nation's 26th state. "Michigan" is believed to come from the from the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigami, meaning "great water" and referred originally toLake Michigan itself. The Great Lakes account for one-fifth...
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Photo Share: Kingbird, Flycatcher and Swallow

Joshua Chrisman (Creator and Admin of Michigan's Wildlife on www.facebook.com/MichigansWildlife) sent us lots of  of lovely pictures that he took last year. Most of the pictures are taken around the Greenville, Grand Rapids, Stanton, and Saginaw areas. Some were also taken in the Upper Peninsula. I will be posting...
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Wild Birds Unlimited - Tidy Cylinder Feeder

This Tidy Cylinder feeder has an attached tray that reduces the amount of seed debris that falls to the ground and allows cardinals to perch comfortably. It is easy to fill; simply drop one of our exclusive seed cylinders into the feeder, hang it, and watch your birds enjoy.Our exclusively-formulated Cranberry, Supreme...
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Are your House Finches getting redder?

I believe that my house finches have been getting redder and redder over the years. Do you think some day they'll be as red as a cardinal?Good nutrition is important for birds, too!House Finch eating seed cylinder on Wild Birds Unlimited Dinner Bell feeder Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4...
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Feeding the birds will not make them "lazy," or "dependent."

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Backyard bird feeding is a convenient way to enjoy wildlife. A recent Census Report reveals that over 65 million Americans, young and old, feed wild birds. Watching birds is the fastest growing hobby in the country, second only to gardening....
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Fun Facts on Squirrels

January 21 is National Squirrel Appreciation Day and I was wondering about the origin of the name “squirrel”. Why are squirrels called squirrels?Wikipedia explains that the word squirrel came from the early 14th century Anglo-Norman word esquirel and from the Old French escurel, which is the reflex of a Latin word sciurus....
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Little brown bird walking up the trunk of tree

It’s such a treat when I spot the Brown Creeper circling the locust tree right outside my window. They're not a frequent visitor like the nuthatches but it’s always a welcome site to see a creeper not so much creeping up a tree but dancing up the trunk of a tree, checking all the crevices in the bark for hidden bugs...
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Different kinds of sunflower seed

I’ve been reading lately about how birds like oil sunflower. Can you explain what that is and how it’s different from other sunflower seed? ~  Saint Louis, Missouri   That is an excellent question! Sunflower seeds are the fruit of the sunflower plant. Black Oil Sunflower and Striped Sunflower are the two...
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Roseate Spoonbill

Roseate Spoonbill FactsKingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ChordataClass: AvesOrder: CiconiiformesFamily: ThreskiornithidaeGenus: AjajaScientific Name: Ajaja ajajaCommon Name: Roseate SpoonbillGroup: BirdNumber Of Species: 1Location: Gulf Coast, Central and South AmericaHabitat: Shallow wetlands and mangrove swampsColour: Pink, White,...
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