Friday, January 25, 2013

The Right Address Today

Our home was definitely the right address today for neighborhood songbirds.  It was an unusually crummy winter day for the central Piedmont with a high of 26F and a wintry mix of sleet and freezing rain.  The birds were hungry and active all day, and from long experience they know they can depend on a meal here.  And my well-stocked feeders attracted crowds.  The scratching ground was like a bus station!  At one point I counted 26 birds; mostly juncos and Pine Siskins but also with cardinals, goldfinches, White Throated Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, and towhees thrown in.  The various nuthatches, chickadees, and such worked the suet feeders hard.  And I even noticed birds out past sunset in a last desperate effort to load food before a raw night under the ice.  I made sure to top of feeders so that the morning rush would be able to warm up on a good meal, and I checked the deicers to ensure liquid water was also on the menu.  After all, I want my address to remain the dining spot of choice!

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