BENEATH THE BIRD FEEDER
Wintertime allows me to partake in one of my favorite pastimes… Feeding the birds! During the warmer months, it’s simply unethical to hang a bird feeder in my area (Catskill Mountains, New York, USA) especially as they attract my curious, hungry neighbors… Black bears.
Ethical considerations were at the forefront of this project. This included hanging the feeder in a tree away from house windows. If not cared for properly, bird feeders can be a vector for diseases, such as salmonella. To avoid this issue I regularly raked beneath the bird feeder (and turned the soil below), rotated the feeder to different branches, occasionally allowed the feeder to be empty, and regularly disinfected the feeder with dish soap and dilute bleach solution.
Additionally, my garden stays ‘wild’ during the colder months, offering options beyond the bird feeder. Planting natives in my garden have been a big priority every year, providing food and cover for fauna. I strongly believe if you engage in feeding the birds, you should do it responsibly!
Throughout this project, I asked myself many questions. Would the bird feeder change the surrounding ecosystem? As a result of birds dropping seeds, what other creatures would this attract?
When the sun went down, deer mice would gather the aforementioned seeds, caching them in a stone wall near the bird feeder (often helped along by the adorable yet venomous Northern short-tailed shrew). When day broke, an assortment of looters (from birds to squirrels) would raid the cached bounty.
Insights into behavior continually intrigued me. Dark-eyed juncos were always the first birds to show up at the crack of dawn while Northern cardinals would always show up at dusk. I started to recognize regulars and grew particularly fond of a deer mouse with a notch in his/her ear, who I eventually named ‘Notches.’
I hope “Beneath The Bird Feeder” inspires others to explore their backyards and to give a closer look at overlooked “common” species, which are no less fabulous than their exotic counterparts.
Imagine if we all paid attention, protected, and respected our immediate surroundings? I believe we’d make significant conservation gains. It’s all there waiting for us, we just have to open our eyes!
As of December 2022, “Beneath The Bird Feeder” has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Science Friday, Cornell’s Living Bird, National Wildlife, Audubon Magazine, Colossal, PetaPixel, and more!
Watch Videos: Science Friday • Beneath The Bird Feeder: Music Video
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