Marjorie

I have made many notes and sketeches during this course of how to enhance my gardens to turn them into nature scape.  I completed the course over a few weeks so I have only been able to make a few small changes so far.   I  plan to refer back to the notes and purchase the native plants on my list when possible.   For now I am enjoying seeing butterflies on my milkweed and hummingbirds at my feeders.   I want to add cardinal flowers next year. I had a finch feeder close to my house and when I moved it away from the house  (as suggested in the course) I am pleased to see multiple finches stopping by on a regular basis. I thought perhaps I no longer had finches but I guess they just did not like being so close to the house. That one small change has made a huge difference in my bird count.  My husband set out some bird boxes a few years ago in the yard and in a meadow behind our house (actually our neighbor’s meadow but the boxes are attached to trees and fence posts that divide our properties). The boxes have been a success and we have had bluebirds as well as sparrows (which kind of want to take over) and swallows.  I plan to plant more native plants near the ones in our own yard.  It is fun to watch the parents chose a box, build the nest and feed the babies and then what a joy to see them fledge.  Although they do not nest in them, the robins like to sit on the boxes and  plunge down to  grab a worm. They must have good eye sight. I started a brush pile and hope to see more insects and then additional birds looking for bugs.   I have really enjoyed all the tips and resources this course has offered. It is a work in progress but progress is being made and that is  what matters. Here is a butterfly on my milkweed and some bluebirds checking out our boxes.

I found the tools to identify my Ecoregion and hardiness zone to be user friendly. I am in the Ohio / Kentucky Carboniferous Plateau which is part of the Western Allegheny Plateau with a hardiness zone 6a – 6b with a lot of clay in my soil. I knew I had clay but I had never heard of the squeeze test before so that was fun.   I have partial sun with established perennial flower gardens in my front and back yard. I was pleased to see I have a good start on native offerings in my gardens. I also have some fruit trees and berry bushes. I learned that some of my plants such as Butterfly Bush (which is pretty and will attract butterflies) is not native to my area and will not be right choice for my nature scape area. Last year I planted a patch of native milkweed with seeds provided by our local natural resource center so I want to expand that area with more native plants for birds and butterflies. I appreciate the resources and information provided to get me on the right path.

We have a small wooded area beyond our yard and several fruit trees. In my garden area I have a variety of perennials and a few annuals but I would like to offer more trumpet shaped native plants for hummingbirds and nectar loving birds.  I would also like to provide more nuts and seeds in addition to feeder food.  We have plenty of insects. LOL   I got a new bird bath for Mother’s day but in this lesson I learned that I have it too full and in a sunny location. I would like to add a source of water closer to the ground but I hesitate to do that since our neighbor has cats. Any thoughts on that????   We have several bird boxes but I am going to make the holes smaller as this year we are attracting Starlings. For now we have been removing the nests every few days but it would be nice if they chose another location altogether to give the bluebirds a chance.

I think it is really neat that hummingbirds wrap the outside of the nests with spider webs.  I wonder if any other birds build the nest to expand as the babies grow?  That was really interesting.  I enjoyed the pictures of the various nests and found the one on the lock to be a most interesting location. Many male birds help in nest building and feeding of the young so one difference is that hummingbird females do all the work.  In the past I have noticed that both male and female Robins gather the materials, but the female is the main nest builder. Both Robin parents help feed the young.  With cardinals the male seems to gather the materials while the female builds.  When she is nesting the male brings her food but he does not seem to help with the eggs.  They both help care for the babies once hatched.   As for Eastern bluebirds the male brings the nesting materials and sits on the nest box while she works on the nest.  (I guess to keep watch and protect the nest). The female builds the nest and sits on the eggs.  Both bluebird parents feed the young. The male hummingbird makes a showy display to attract a mate but then does not participate in any of these activities.

I have the Ruby Throated Hummingbirds that visit my yard here in Southern Ohio.  I see more females at my feeders than males but put this little swing between 2 feeders and was able to get a picture of this little guy the other day.

Activity 3:  I am noticing that we have some Eagles nesting in our part of Southern Ohio now. For years we did not see any at all so that is a good sign.  A few years ago I heard that the bluebirds were scarce and we were asked to help.  Several people (myself included) have put up nesting boxes to lure them back and give them a safe place to raise their young. Of course, sometimes other birds use the boxes but that is ok too.    Below  is a picture of one of the 20 nesting boxes recently installed at our local lake / State park that we often visit.  I will be checking these for nest activity this spring and summer.

Activity 1:  I love to watch birds. I find it relaxing to sit and listen to their calls and songs.  I appreciate those who eat bugs (especially mosquitos) and those who drop seeds or pollinate flowers.  We have a lot of Turkey Vultures around and I always found them ugly and did not like seeing them attack road kill. However, I had not thought of what a good job they were doing to clean up the environment and keep germs away from other species and humans. I was interested to learn about all the good they do and I will look upon them more fondly in the future.

Activity 1: I have always loved watching birds but have never kept track of my sightings in written or electronic form.  Since starting this course, I have been using Merlin Bird ID on my phone. The other day on a ride near a small lake I also tried out ebird to help identify birds by features.  It really helped to see which birds would be expected to be at my location.  I spotted several common birds and even one that showed up as less common in my area.  I did not dare submit my data in case I did it wrong but I really want to in the future.  During this lesson I clicked the link and signed up for the ebird free course.  After I complete that I will become a full member of the group and be more confident in sharing what I see / hear.   I also look forward to watching my own birding list grow on  the ebird app and using a hand written checklist for the first time.

location were a local wetlands area and a tree lined country road near open fields. At the wetlands this week I was able to spot a wading bird. I used the bird identify questions and am pretty sure it was a female blue heron.  She was not as tall as expected but using binoculars I thought perhaps she was sitting on a nest.  I took a couple of picture but they are from a distance.   I will post them below.   I read that some herons nest in trees and some in the marshy area if they feel it is safe.  This heron was the only bird I saw that evening. In the past we have seen ducks and geese in these wetlands but not this time. On my country walk one afternoon this week I spotted red-winged black birds in the field, northern cardinals in the trees and many of Purple Martins at a Martin house our Amish neighbors installed. These are two of the different habitats in my local area.  

Activity 2:  I have several different feeders to accommodate the “regulars” that stop by my yard.   I notice that the Mourning Doves often feed from the seeds on the ground under the feeder in the yard. The Downy Woodpecker hangs out by the suet feeder. He sits there for a good amount of time before flying off.  The Cardinals eat seeds patiently from the feeder on my porch and then if chased away they come back to clean up the seeds that spilled onto the cement floor of the porch.  They hop along and get as much as they can from the ground as if not wanting it to go to waste.  Blue Jays and Grackles are a bit aggressive to watch as they swoop in, grab and go.  They often scare other birds away.  Finches like the small holed bag I fill with Nyjer seed. They hang on the bag and eat from there since the bigger birds can’t get their beaks into the little holes.  Robins dig around on the ground for worms and Hummingbirds sip nectar with their long beaks. They are also very possessive of the feeders and don’t share very well.