To Feed or Not to Feed

 

Steller's Jay - Cyanocitta stelleri

We recently got an inch of snow and LOTS of rain in our neighborhood.  At the higher elevations it snowed and didn't rain, resulting in several feet of new snow on the ground!  Seeing birds in the snow is beautiful, but it also makes me worry about their survival. 

In May we got several inches of snow and cold temperatures that kept the flowering fruit trees from being pollinated. The only non-native fruits that weren't affected were the ones that weren't blooming at the time, mainly blackberries and grapes.  Hardly any of the apples, cherries, pears, plums, or persimmons bore fruit this year.  As a result, this fall there was a lot less food available for the wildlife in our neighborhood. 

What about the native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers. Were they in bloom in May when the snow fell?  Did their "crop" fail as well? Did they produce a lot less seeds and fruits?  The Black Oaks were definitely affected and didn't produce any acorns this year!  I'm guessing that most of the native plants experienced "crop failure", and that there is indeed a current shortage of these native, wild foods. This shortage could well be affecting seed-eating bird and rodent populations, and in turn rodent-eating mammal and raptor populations.  It is surprising how much an unseasonally late snow can affect so much, for months and months!

  

Steller's Jays - Cyanocitta stelleri

Because of these apparent food shortages, I have decided to occasionally feed our local birds this winter.  However, feeding birds can cause problems for birds.  Bird feeders can concentrate birds in one area, bring birds together that are not usually together, spread disease, and create waste. 

 To keep that from happening I am NOT using bird feeders, but am casting bird seed on the ground. I have two separate areas where I'm casting the seed. I am also changing the areas where I cast the bird seed on a weekly basis. I am not feeding the birds on sunny, warm days when they should be able to find food, but rather limiting my feeding to days when snow is covering the ground and temperatures are low. I am astounded at the number of birds that show up!  Recently, I counted 24 Steller's Jays eating the seed I had scattered!  I hope I'm helping, but I don't know that for sure,  For now, I think limited help is the best idea. Perhaps no help would be even better.

I am concerned with the number of websites that encourage feeding birds, especially in the winter.  Most of them don't mention the problems associated with bird feeders.  Please do your own research before you decide to feed any wild birds.  I would highly recommend  the following articles as a starting point;  https://www.audubon.org/news/to-feed-or-not-feed and https://www.fws.gov/story/feed-or-not-feed-wild-birds and https://thelocalreporter.press/to-feed-or-not-to-feed-is-that-the-question/.

Black Phoebe - Sayornis nigricans

What do songbirds eat in the wild?

During the spring and summer months, most songbirds eat mainly insects and spiders. Insects are easy to find and catch, and are very nutritious. During fall and winter, however, birds that don’t migrate must eat fruits and seeds to survive.  

There is one male Black Phoebes that is a year-round resident in our neighborhood.  Its diet consists mainly of a variety of insects, including dragonflies, damselflies, spiders, bees, wasps, beetles, and sometimes small berries. Maybe it's eating the dried-up blackberries. How do they survive here in the winter when these insects aren't out and about? I often see it perched above the river. Perhaps some aquatic insects hatch now?  

Spotted Towhee - Pipilo maculatis

During the breeding season Spotted Towhees feed on a variety of beetles, as well as a wide range of plant seeds and fruits. In the winter their diet is reduced to seeds and fruits. These birds live year-round in our neighborhood.  They use the hop-back-scratch method on the ground to uncover their foods. 

Mountain Quail - Oreortyx pictus

Mountain Quail are another of our year-round residents.  The primarily feed on nuts, seeds, leaves of plants, but will also eat insects, especially from galls!

Northern Flicker - Colaptes auratus

 

Another year-round resident is the Northern Flicker.  In the summer it primarily eats ants and beetles.  In the fall and winter it consumes fruits.

European Starlings and Mistletoe with berries

Sturnus vulgaris - Phoradendron leucarpum

When I state that birds eat "fruits", I don't just mean the domestic non-native fruits such as apples and cherries.  I mean the native "fruits" that contain the seeds of a plant, such as a rosehips and mistletoe berries. 

One of the most available fruits at this time of year is mistletoe. I took the above picture at Gray Lodge two weeks ago, but we also have this mistletoe in our neighborhood. Over 28 species of birds in California eat the berries, as well as gray squirrels, raccoons, pine martens, chipmunks, porcupines, and ringtails! Sheesh! Mistletoe plants are dioecious, with the male and female species being separate plants. The female plants are the ones that produce berries! Apparently mistletoe berries are so popular that some mammals and birds, including Bluebirds, actually spend the night in them! They may do this to establish "ownership" of the berries, or for the warmth of the dense clumps, no one knows for sure! If you squish a mistletoe berry between your fingers, it will stick to your finger and you can't shake it off! They have a thick, viscous substance that makes them sticky. Being sticky, the seeds are easily transported to new areas by birds and mammals.

Grizzly Peak - 12/`12/22

Damp Earth Art

We got an inch of snow on Sunday morning, after 24 hours of pouring rain! Sierra City and the Lakes Basin got 3+ feet of snow!  The total rainfall in our neighborhood for Saturday and Sunday was 3.95"!!!  This brings us to a water year total of 16.07". The river flow peaked at 1500 CFS early Saturday morning, and rose 2.5 ft in height!  Since then it's been sunny and cold, with lows in the 20's overnight. Possible rain is predicted for the beginning of next week!  Fingers crossed!

I'm going to keep posting rain inspired writings, art, etc. on my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com. Any submissions would be greatly appreciated. Please join me in my continuing hope for precipitation! Perhaps our collective efforts may help it happen.

Is the Fall color all gone?

What's going on in the foothills?

Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more!

Unfortunately, you can no longer sign up to get my blog via email. Just go to northyubanaturalist.blogspot.com directly.

Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!