A winter bird-feeding wonderland

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/01/2018 (3057 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Earlier this winter, I attended a workshop called Attracting Birds to Your Backyard at the Osborne Library.

The presenter was Sherrie Verluis, owner of the Preferred Perch. Her business, located at 4-1604 St. Mary’s Rd., specializes in feeding wild birds.

I found the workshop very informative. Sherrie described the different types of feeders available on the market, and the importance of feeding birds the proper types of seeds and suet. During the presentation, she recounted amusing stories and showed colourful slides of the many birds she has observed.

For the past few years, I have been attracting wild birds to my backyard. Each fall, my husband helps me anchor tree branches to a corner of our deck. We hang seed and suet feeders in the branches and create a feeding station. Our patio doors open on to the deck and allow me to view the birds up close from my sunny kitchen.

Watching the birds is one of my winter joys.  I have several types of feeders, and so attract different species.

I have a mob of feisty sparrows that visit every day. Sherrie suggested filling a separate feeder with millet (a favourite treat), and hanging it on a separate tree away from the other feeders. According to Sherrie, sparrows are “the mafia” of the bird world, bullying other species and taking over the feeders. They are an invasive species and breed rampantly.

Among my regular deck-feeding visitors are a pair of downy woodpeckers. They will perch on my suet feeder for long periods of time. The woodpeckers are beautiful black and white birds and the male has a distinctive red patch on his head. They are gentle birds and have a lovely call.

My favourite guests are the black-capped chickadees. They have a cheerful call and are quite tame. They constantly flit back and forth between our backyard trees and our feeding station and they are a delight to watch. 

This year, I have added a blue jay feeder filled with peanuts. I am delighted to see these huge, colourful birds daily, and have come to recognize their noisy screams. They are bossy birds and definitely near the top of the pecking order.

These birds entertain me during the cold winter days, and make me think of all the other species that will arrive with the spring.

Perhaps the best bird feeding tip I received during the workshop was about attracting Baltimore orioles and hummingbirds. The secret is to put out Welch’s grape jelly in early April, as the first birds appear. This is something I will attempt in the spring. For now, I will continue to enjoy my winter visitors.   

Joanne O’Leary is a community correspondent for Riverbend. Contact her at jeffandjoanne@hotmail.com

Joanne O'Leary
Riverbend community correspondent

Joanne O’Leary is a community correspondent for Riverbend.

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