Not like slash-your-tires jealous. It's only a light, sea-foam tinted sort of jealousy. :)
Last spring, my old cedar hopper-style bird feeder had the honour of being selected by a couple of beautifully bright male goldfinches as a buffet table. I was so excited! They came back for a few days, and then they were gone for the summer season. According to my bird book, they only hang out in the winter and early spring in Coastal NC.
This winter, I decided to try a sock feeder, because I've seen pictures of its success across the web. I'm convinced that my gardening friend Jayne @ Green and Serene is The Goldfinch Whisperer.
But me? Nothing. Nada. Zilch. I don't know if I have it in the wrong spot, so I moved it. Still nothing. And now I don't know if the feed is too old? I check it to make sure it's not all gross or moldy or anything, and it seems to be fine.
Yesterday, I believe I finally got two female goldfinches to stop by! But I'm about to wing my sock feeder across the field hammer-throw style, because it wasn't where they decided to do lunch. They stopped on my red metal feeder lol.
Now if only their husbands would join them, I'd be very delighted :D
EDIT @ 5:54 EST: Woo-hoo! Blotanical's back up! :)
Posts
13 comments:
Goldfinches are selective and once they settle in on a special diet it is hard to change their minds.
They do seem to prefer the sock feeders here too and eat thistle seed just like their cousins.
You totally made me laugh with "not slash your tires jealous." You obviously have a zest for life and a great sense of humor. Thanks for blogging and keep up the great work!
Love that title! Haha! we only get goldfinches in winter and spring as well. They usually do feed in flocks. Happy to see you did get a couple of visitors. I always get more of the dulls than the brightly colored males. Do you have small trees and shrubs near the feeders?
Abe: Well, whatever my finches seem to like is in the regular feeder mix. Because they're not touching the sock feeder lol.
Liza: Thank you for your kind compliments about my blog! Makes me want to keep on going :D
FG: I don't have anything in the immediate vicinity. But nearby there is the row of my neighbour's hedges, where birds seem to like to hang out. I have a small crepe myrtle near the ripped out veggie garden. it's hard to get Mr. A to stop grumbling when I plant a tree. We have a septic tank out here in the countryside, and he's afraid of the roots of trees and shrubs invading the system. Which is understandable. But I'd like to plant a few around the far edges of the yard :)
I hesitate to give unsolicited advice, but... Birds like cover and protection. I always put my birdfeeders in the open, but within a few feet of shrubs and small trees that they can escape to. I read many years ago that birds like variety in height, so I make sure my bird garden has plain dirt, groundcovers, perennials, shrubs, tiny trees, and medium-sized trees. There are also giant oak trees about 50 feet away. Birds perch in whatever height gives them comfort while waiting for their turn at the feeders. Also, do you have a birdbath?
They probably bring their husbands along the next time round. Then I remember about mantis, where the female will chop off the head of male praying mantis as soon as they finish "doing it"... The female birds won't do that I guess... huh. ~bangchik
I love your post titles! I had no luck with the sock feeders either, but that was because a squirrel decided to chew it apart first.
Goldfinches show up here and there in my yard, only one year were they regular visitors to a thistle feeder. Maybe now that the females have shown up the males won't be far behind.
Thanks for the link, Kyna :-) Congratulations on your females finches. I hope their spouses decide to join them. I'm wondering if my goldfinches have now moved on for the season, or if they just don't like the fact that the sock feeders got wet in the rain the other day. I filled them up with fresh seed two days ago, but they're still full this morning and last week they were getting emptied on a daily basis. I'll try with a fresh sock this weekend and see if that piques their interest.
Well, my neighbours have large trees. But other than that it's not a problem I can fix quickly lol. :) I do have a birdbath, that's pretty nearby. I'm thinking about getting another one though, because I think mine is too deep for the smaller birds.
Bangchik: Boy, I'm sure glad that the birds don't do that, it would be quite a backyard mess LOL :D
Catherine: I've never had any luck with regular thistle feeders either. I'm close to giving up lol. Since a couple of them will still stop to my regular feeders, I think that will just have to do :)
Jayne: You're welcome :D It's almost like we're fussing over human babies, trying to guess what they'll take to without words LOL.
I hope the male Goldfinches show themselves soon! We're lucky here, it seems our Goldfinches must find plenty of food that interests them in and around the edge of our woods. I can often see them zipping around our bay trees.
They're so cool, aren't they? They look like little tropical birds...:)
Magpies and pigeons; that's all I ever get.
My husband loves magpies. He's only seen them when he visited me in Canada, thinks they're awesome. I told him I used to call them flying rats LOL. They would wake me up every day, being so noisy....
Post a Comment