START OF A NEW YEAR (1/04/02)

Although we’ve started a new calendar year, as far as bird feeding goes, nothing much changes. The holidays may have brought some lucky folks a new feeder or a stock of exotic seeds, perhaps even a new birdbath or heater. Still and all, it’s winter.

We can continue to hope for the arrival of more northern bird species. So far, tantalizing reports of red and white-winged crossbills and pine grosbeaks remain just that: tantalizing, meaning just out of reach. There are plenty of those species on the mainland, and we can still hope to find these winter brighteners will discover the Cape’s pine woods and other our avian attractions.

This is also the winter of the highly erratic pine siskin. These prominently streaked finches, the same size as goldfinches with which they frequently associate but with a thinner bill, are thick on the Mainland and random on the Cape. Two appeared at our thistle feeder in October but stayed only one day. With my annual feeder count scheduled for February 9-17, I hope everyone will consult a field guide and become familiar with this small finch.

Another bird not always available to us in the winter is the red-breasted nuthatch whose numbers this winter exceed those of recent years. This plump and colorful cousin of the more common white-breasted nuthatch is an exciting addition to anyone’s feeder coterie. Red-breasteds are at least an inch smaller than the white-breasteds and have a bold white eye stripe and colorful rusty underparts. We have had a loner for several months now. He has built a stock of sunflower seeds somewhere, as he is constantly at our various sunflower seed feeders.

This year shows a definite rebound in the house finch population. In recent years, their numbers plummeted, presumably from the serious eye infection which many had. Take a good look at these ubiquitous birds; they outnumber purple finches, I would guess, 100 to one. It is not so much their colors that distinguish them, it’s the way they are marked. The house finch is streaked on the sides and belly; the purple finch is not. The female purple finch has a prominent white eye stripe which the house finch lacks. Use one of the up-to-date field guides to help you notice the many differences between these two species.

One way to increase your chances of seeing these northern and subalpine species is to join some of the field trips from the Cape Cod Bird Club, Mass. Audubon or the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History. Check the Calendar in Fridays’ Cape Cod Times or contact the individual organizations for their schedules.

As an aside, we now have three screech owl boxes in our yard, one of which we hope will attract a flicker next spring. For the moment, two of them are harboring screech owls. We can’t tell whether there is a pair in each box or just an individual, but on several evenings when we’ve come home, we’ve seen a head peering out from two different boxes, one of which was a red-phased owl.

Since bird feeding is the hallmark of our winter season, here are a few memos to help you get the most out of it.

Add natural features to your feeding station, such as branches to perch on, to make birds feel more at ease. We have done this by fixing a large dead branch upright near our main feeding area. The birds took to it right away, and we always have a colorful bird perched up where we can really see it. Try it; I’m sure you’ll like the results!

Do not use grease, oil, petroleum jelly, or similar substances on your feeder poles or wires to thwart squirrels or other feeder-raiding creatures. If these substances come into contact with bird feathers, they are impossible for the bird to preen or wash out. Gooey feathers can become useless for flight or insulation, thus putting the birds at risk to predators, extreme weather, and disease. Instead, use a pole-mounted baffle to thwart mammals. 

Don't offer so-called wild bird mixes in tube feeders. These are better fed on platforms or out of hopper feeders. Birds that prefer sunflower seed will just empty the feeder to get at the sunflower seeds.

Build a brush pile near your feeder to make sparrows, towhees, and other shy birds feel more at home, but be sure it won't harbor roaming cats.

GRAPHIC: Red-breasted Nuthatch