Nope, we don't have fences or an ice arena where I live in Ames
Bird Migration and Misc Birding Thread
- Thread starter Kinch
- Start date
People who like the Orioles can come and grab the ones in my yard. I like them, great song, very pretty birds, but man, they decimate my Hummingbird feeders. I've put out the jelly, but they don't bother with that until they've spilled out all the juice from the hummingbird feeders.
They’ll scold you if you let the feeders get low.
. It’s a pretty short window where they are eating like crazy, but it’s pretty intense for a while. My mom has at least 10 males right now so she’s filling up feeders a couple times a day. She saw one scarlet tanager but doesn’t think it stuck around. And she saw one indigo and is hoping she’ll get a few more. A cat got a grosbeak and I pity any cat that takes out an indigo.
Lots going on today. Now have House Wrens in my other bluebird house. They were fighting off a sparrow earlier today that was trying to get into the house. Also, just spotted a yellow warbler in my tree out back. Merlin says I have a Tennessee Warbler too, but havent seen it.
The orioles, catbirds, others... are loving the orange half's that I have on temporary feeders strapped to two trees. A few years ago I made it out of two pieces of a split cherry limb (Diameter of original log at 5-6", 14" long, then split. Put a 3" screw on each end, drill one hole on each end for wire to go through and tie. Place the orange halves on the screws then use mechanics wire to wrap the tree lightly and hold in place 5-6 feet off the ground. Easy to change out orange halves, cant see the wire, doesn't hurt the tree and easily can be taken down and stored for next season once they stop coming to the oranges. Also from my experience, the orange slices don't seem to attract the black/carpenter ants like jelly does...not a fan of using jelly...messy and draws lots of critters. Have yet to see any Orchard Orioles that usually arrives too.
The orioles, catbirds, others... are loving the orange half's that I have on temporary feeders strapped to two trees. A few years ago I made it out of two pieces of a split cherry limb (Diameter of original log at 5-6", 14" long, then split. Put a 3" screw on each end, drill one hole on each end for wire to go through and tie. Place the orange halves on the screws then use mechanics wire to wrap the tree lightly and hold in place 5-6 feet off the ground. Easy to change out orange halves, cant see the wire, doesn't hurt the tree and easily can be taken down and stored for next season once they stop coming to the oranges. Also from my experience, the orange slices don't seem to attract the black/carpenter ants like jelly does...not a fan of using jelly...messy and draws lots of critters. Have yet to see any Orchard Orioles that usually arrives too.
I find jelly to cause more problems than it is worth. Use orange halves and place in a different location than your hummingbird feeders...
I did that two years ago, they never touched them. I changed them out pretty often too. They just go after the sugar water, when that's gone, then they went to the jelly, never touched the oranges.
Thanks for that info. Was pondering doing the jelly but was worried about drawing in more wasps. Think I will skip it unless I put it in a far corner of yard. Husband has never seen an oriole. Had never seen a hummingbird until he moved to Iowa.
I never had a problem with the wasps until late in the summer. Even then, the wasps were more of a problem around the hummingbird feeders than they were with the jelly.
Don't feed orioles with a hummingbird feeder. Just put out a bowl with sugar water with some orange slices. This can be done in spring before insects are a pest, and make sure to watch for rain.
Curious if anyone is seeing Orchard Orioles at feeders? They are deep reddish-brown with black tails, slimmer and smaller than the Baltimore and the females are greenish. Over the past 40 years, they have increased.
A western sister species of the Indigo, the Lazuli Bunting, does resemble an Eastern Bluebird. These occur infrequently in Iowa.Bluebird isn't it?
My intent is not to feed the Orioles with hummingbird feeders. As I said earlier, I've given them many other choices, they go to the feeders. I've gone so far as on most of my hummingbird feeders, I've cut off the perches since the hummingbirds are the only ones who can fly and still drink. I have left the perches on a couple though, as I see the hummingbirds do like to stop and drink once in a while.
Yard bird species #78 showed up tonight...gray-cheeked thrush. Along with a number of rose-breasted grosbeaks, Tennessee warbler, and Swainson's thrushes, and an oriole. Oh, and our resident merlin.
My wife said Oriole couple showed up Friday but I have been taking advantage of the weather and haven't seen them. Haven't been home much during daylight. The rain stopped that. Doing dishes tonight I was able to get a decent picture with my phone!
Attachments
Last edited:
I posted abut wasp trap and my wife bought a couple off Amazon that work well. She said she had 5 yellow jackets in one the first day she put it up. I've been taking the Oriole jelly feeder and hummingbird feeder in at night. Coon made a mess two nights in a row. You can see the woods behind my house. There is a creek down over the hill they run the creek bottom.
My wife saw a Pileated Woodpecker. We haven't seen one in at least four years. I want a picture of him!
My wife saw a Pileated Woodpecker. We haven't seen one in at least four years. I want a picture of him!
In Iowa, it took me almost 10 years to see my first Merlin thanks to DDT. Now they nest in my neighborhood and they are not nice. I know how Mother Nature works but it is still hard to watch a baby Barn Swallow take wing and then disappear mid-flight in a puff of feathers. A gray-green flash of underwing from the Merlin with the swallow in its clutches and show over.
Last edited:
Yeah, nature can be a *****. This weekend I watched a crow steal a Robin's egg from her nest as she helplessly stood by calling out a futile alarm.
I watched this guy tear up a vole in my yard once, too.
I'm in NE Iowa and have a few orchard orioles visit my feeder every year. Just yesterday I watched an orchard oriole bite the ass of baltimore oriole that got in front of it at the jelly feeder, even though the baltimore oriole was bigger. Pretty funny, I've never seen that before.
A little bit off topic,.....last September we took a raft trip down the Snake River through Grand Teton National Park. Perfect calm old people stuff.
The raft held14 adults,....it was a couple from Austin(byway of Hyderabad 30+ years ago) who had just retired from Dell, us 2 and the guide. A spectacular early morning led to fantastic sights. Then our guide got excited. A rare Bald Eagle sighting.
We see Bald Eagles all the time out our back yard. You can see dozens around Arsenal Island between Davenport and Rock Island in winter.
I have seen this as an image on a flag, with arrows in his talons,....never in real time.
Drying off after a fishing exhibition,
The raft held14 adults,....it was a couple from Austin(byway of Hyderabad 30+ years ago) who had just retired from Dell, us 2 and the guide. A spectacular early morning led to fantastic sights. Then our guide got excited. A rare Bald Eagle sighting.
We see Bald Eagles all the time out our back yard. You can see dozens around Arsenal Island between Davenport and Rock Island in winter.
I have seen this as an image on a flag, with arrows in his talons,....never in real time.
Drying off after a fishing exhibition,
