186 replies to this topic

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Thanks Mark for the natures view.

What a fun back yard.

We live in an area that has "green space" behind the house and

get a lot of wildlife also. I stopped feeding the birds as they made too much of a mess

The field rats were attracted to the food the birds spilled out of the feeders.

I do make lots of different houses for them and also put out some stuffing fiber for their nests.

I do miss watching the Finches though.

On our walks around the area we see a large assortment of wildlife though.

Nature sure is fun.

Frank

[JaSAn]

Just noticed, you don't have any squirrel barriers on your feeders.  Must be nice.  Squirrels and field mice will empty my feeders in a day if I didn't block them.

[ski3pin]

22° ice rink this morning. A lot of folks are out playing bumper cars............ah. winter

[MarkBC]

Just noticed, you don't have any squirrel barriers on your feeders.  Must be nice.  Squirrels and field mice will empty my feeders in a day if I didn't block them.

 

I have very active and frisky squirrels in my yard (see images below). But though they freely jump from tree to tree or tree to my roof and back, they are very reluctant to take the leap of faith from a branch to the feeders.  They seem to know that there's nothing rough or soft for their claws to cling to. 

I have my seed feeders hanging from long wires -- longer than even big western gray squirrels can reach.  So they spend most of their time foraging in the duff below the feeders for all the seed that sloppy or picky birds knock down.

One time I saw an innovative bold explorer of a gray squirrel lower himself down the wire from the branch above...but,thankfully, that behavior has not caught on -- yet.

 

  

[JaSAn]

 . . .

I have my seed feeders hanging from long wires -- longer than even big western gray squirrels can reach . . .

 

Maybe I should try wire.  I currently use parachord and the little buggers will just repel down and climb back up it.  I have to put 2 liter soda bottles inline to keep them away.

 

My other problem is crows: they can also empty a bird feeder in no time.

[MarkBC]

Maybe I should try wire.  ...

 

I have one feeder hanging from fancy stainless steel wire -- thin and strong and it's been weatherproof over many years.  The other one is very low-tech: an opened-up wire clothes hanger ...and it works, too.

 

I don't think I have field mice in my yard, but there are ground squirrels and chipmunks.  They only go up the tree trunk to drink from the waterer -- they don't try to raid the feeders.

[Vic Harder]

I have very active and frisky squirrels in my yard (see images below). But though they freely jump from tree to tree or tree to my roof and back, they are very reluctant to take the leap of faith from a branch to the feeders.  They seem to know that there's nothing rough or soft for their claws to cling to. 

I have my seed feeders hanging from long wires -- longer than even big western gray squirrels can reach.  So they spend most of their time foraging in the duff below the feeders for all the seed that sloppy or picky birds knock down.

One time I saw an innovative bold explorer of a gray squirrel lower himself down the wire from the branch above...but,thankfully, that behavior has not caught on -- yet.

 

Gray-Squirrels-4443-2.jpg  Gray-Squirrels-4459-2.jpg

OMG, those two pics, in sequence, are hilarious.  Thanks!

[ski3pin]

OMG, those two pics, in sequence, are hilarious.  Thanks!

 

 

[pvstoy]

+2....  what a story can be told from pictures...

[MarkBC]

I shot those photos (through my sliding glass window) this summer but didn't post them here because I thought they might be too "PG-13" for WTW.       

But if not...then here are two more from the same series.  (they probably belong in the Wildlife Photography forum, and not the "winter" forum, but oh well...):

 

  

 

It's how squirrels pass the time when they're not eating...