Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2017 i Birds and Blooms Extra

So when I moved into a house I love making lists. near downtown Milwaukee at the beginning of this year, I began to track the birds in my backyard. Goldfinches, chickadees and downies are frequent fliers, along with the usual undesirable birds like grackles, house sparrows and starlings. My current count is 17 species. When I sat down to write this issue’s Feeder Talk (page 24) about the tufted titmouse, I found myself longing for one of these super cute and acrobatic little birds to visit my feeders. I have plenty of shelter, suet and a couple of kinds of seed in my small outdoor space. What I’ve been lacking is peanuts—a titmouse favorite. (Now a peanut feeder is at the top of my shopping list.) With chilly weather on…

1 Recycled glass night-light, $38, uncommongoods.com 2 Barn Owl Plushie, $27, fairweatherfriends.etsy.com 3 Hoot Owl Hoot! board game for children 4 and up, $16, peaceablekingdom.com 4 Growth chart to hang in a bedroom or playroom, $34, bedbathandbeyond.com 5 Woodland Owl Matte Rain Boots, $25, target.com 6 Classic Critter Owl Lunch Bag, $28, potterybarnkids.com we should know about? Send us have you seen a terrific product a note via our Submission Guidelines on page 62. We’re always looking for suggestions!…

I’m lucky enough to live next to Versailles State Park, the second-largest state park in Indiana. This bald eagle was perched in a tree overlooking the lake, and I slowly worked my way to a spot directly below this amazing bird. It posed for about a half-hour and, from time to time, looked down to see what I was up to. Jim Waldo VERSAILLES, INDIANA I have transformed my backyard into a bird sanctuary, including goldfinch feeders, hummingbird feeders, a birdbath—you name it! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would attract such a large variety of birds, though. Bushtits, black phoebes, Nuttall’s woodpeckers, orange-crowned warblers and Anna’s hummingbirds have all stopped by. But the one bird I can’t get enough of is the yellow-rumped warbler. It doesn’t…

TOP10 1 CHOKEBERRY 2 ARROWWOOD VIBURNUM 3 HEDGE COTONEASTER 4 SPICEBUSH 5 TOR BIRCHLEAF SPIREA 6 SWEETSPIRE 7 SMOKEBUSH 8 FOTHERGILLA 9 COMMON WITCHHAZEL 10 OAKLEAF HYDRANGEA The arrival of fall signals the end of peak growing season and a shift from the sizzling heat of summer to cooler temps. Say farewell to your brightest blooms, because now it’s time for your shrubs to shine! Chokeberry ARONIA, ZONES 3 TO 9 SIZE: 3 TO 10 FEET TALL AND 3 TO 5 FEET WIDE This North American native brings year-round beauty to any landscape. Once the colorful autumn leaves drop, the red or black berries take center stage. Birds chow down on the fruit throughout winter. Chokeberry welcomes spring with white flowers and spends the summer decked out in glossy green…

a bird’s beak is the most important resource it has, and every species has one solely designed for survival. Birds use beaks for just about everything: building nests, feeding their young, cleaning their feathers, defending themselves and eating (of course). But while birders have been able to pin down how each variety of beak is used, there’s one answer they haven’t landed on: Is it bill or is it beak? Even around the Birds & Blooms office, we’re not always sure if we should say beak or bill . So I asked naturalists Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman to weigh in. “Ornithologists tend to say bills; the general public tends to say beaks,” they say. “One distinction that’s sometimes made is that a beak is more like the hooked beak of…

WHY I LOVE IT My city is one of a trio—Easton, Allentown and Bethlehem—that forms the Lehigh Valley region or, as locals call it, the Valley. With mountain ridges and thick forest surrounding the area, the great outdoors is always within reach wherever you turn. And summer in the city means fantastic farmers markets, such as the Allentown Fairgrounds Farmers Market, and tons of roadside veggie stands. GO EAGLE-WATCHING Fall is one of the best times to visit because majestic bald eagles and other birds of prey migrate through the state beginning in mid-August. Delaware Canal State Park has a 60-mile hiking and biking trail along the Delaware River and is a prime spot to see eagles, ospreys, herons and double-crested cormorants. More than 150 bird species have been seen…

Dabblers and Divers Don’t duck out on this challenge! How many of these water lovers can you identify? Here’s a hint: One of them has extravagant head feathers that look like a hood. Go to page 62 to see how many you got right.…

MISCANTHUS Miscanthus sinensis Zones 4 to 9 You’ll be on cloud nine with the fluffy, frosted tops of this ornamental grass. The big, showy flower heads and height of up to 12 feet give it a profile that s both dramatic and delicate. In fall, some plants’ silky gray panicles turn maroon or purplish brown; all last through winter. Plant miscanthus in a sun drenched area.…

A small gray bird flits energetically through the treetops. At first glance, you might write it off as a spunky chickadee, but a closer look reveals crested head feathers and orange flanks characteristic of a tufted titmouse. These easygoing birds are prevalent year-round in the Eastern U.S. They’re expert foragers that tend to spend their time in areas with large woodland trees, such as deciduous and mixed forests. More recently, populations have increased in orchards, city parks and suburbs, where they belt out their recognizable peter-peter-peter song. Listen for them as early as midwinter, and expect them to serenade you into spring breeding season. Mealtime rituals With fall and winter right around the corner, now is an ideal time to focus on attracting titmice to your yard. Put up feeders…

House sparrows ate bits of leaves (especially the fungus spots) off my hydrangea last fall. Can you explain this behavior? Lenore Poole INWOOD, WEST VIRGINIA Kenn and Kimberly: House sparrows are pesky at times, but they’re also admired for their survival skills and adaptable behavior. The majority of their diet is plant material, and although they concentrate on seeds, they sometimes eat leaves or flower petals. House sparrows watch each other and copy behaviors. If one decided to munch on hydrangea leaves, it’s not surprising that others followed. But we have no good answer for why they focused on the fungus spots or ate the leaves in the first place. My backyard is typically full of wonderful birds—red-breasted nuthatches, black-capped chickadees, mountain chickadees and wrens—but a red-winged blackbird chased them…

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