[tn-bird] Re: mockingbirds at feeders?
- From: Dthomp2669@xxxxxxx
- To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 17 Jun 2002 12:07:38 EDT
Since I moved into this house in 1991, I have had several generations of
mockingbirds feed themselves and their young on peanut butter
(non-crunchy--for some reason, they spit out the pieces of nut, so it is a
waste of money to use it), grape jelly, oranges, apples and other fruit that
becomes too overripe for my taste. They also love suet and the bird cakes
which I make from Martha Sergeant's recipe. The mockers eat all this stuff
pretty much year round. Mine do seem to take a haietus for about 6-8 weeks
when they have fattened up after they are finally through with all their
nesting chores, then show back up looking sleek and clean again after it gets
pretty cold or by Christmas.
At present, I have two families of mockers who surrounded me this morning as
I put out their food. The pair from across the street has brought its second
set of young to my feeder, and one parent is ferrying peanut butter back to
the other parent who is sitting on the next with the THIRD clutch of eggs
this season. Last year, they actually raised FIVE separate families. By
late September--early October, the parent birds were sad sights in their
total bedraggled plumage.
Much to the surprise of people who have been here and witnessed it, my
mockers come to my call. This morning I had one parent bird and its babies
from across the street and another parent bird and its babies from a yard
back behind my property. At one point, I had five mockers fluttering around
on the wires in front of me, the roof overlooking the deck just above me, and
a couple in my blooming althea (AKA rose of Sharon) in front of me. Even the
babies have learned the signal just as the first fledglings did who have
already been banished from the smorga--bird. They come to my beck & call,
waiting with frenzied anticipation while I distribute the food, and the old
ones come right down within a foot of my hand when I am doing that.
One sad thing is that I have only seen one parent from the pair out back for
a couple of weeks. That one parent does leave with food, so perhaps the
other "half" is also on the nest. It seems that I have a "single parent"
working the back. Actually, the other day, one of the "across the street"
birds actually flew back to the back yard area with food, so I do not know if
it got confused or if it was giving the other bird a helping hand (wing).
They are all from the same lineage, most likely, so who knows? Maybe there
is a bit of family loyalty. Although the parents scrap over the food when
they are all ferrying it to the nest, they seem to "join forces" against the
starlings when they get the babies over here to feed themselves. It is
amazing how quickly the young become proficient at eating alone, but yet
revert to the wing quivering, cheeping little babies again as soon as a
parent appears. Those babies, even when quite young, can really fight off the
adult starlings and send them packing from the feeder. Never underestimate
the terror emitted by the mockingbirds, no matter how young they are.
My mockers are sort of my pride and joy. They are like little friends who
know that I am here to provide for them, and sometimes, they seem to answer
me when I talk to them. They appear to be cocking their heads and listening
to my voice just like my little poodle dogs do.
Put out the right stuff, and the will give you many hours of feeder joy.
Dee Thompson
Nashville, TN.
=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with
first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation.
-----------------------------------------------------
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
-----------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958
=========================================================
Other related posts:
