# Bigbird



## passthebottle (Jan 22, 2011)

Here's an unexpected find at the bird feeder lately, picking up the droppings on the ground, she seems to love the sunflower seeds. She is coming around all thr time now for the last couple of months and will eat the seeds out of your hand!


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## cyberdigger (Jan 22, 2011)

Cool! Looks like a young female turkey.. is she alone?


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## passthebottle (Jan 22, 2011)

She can stretch her neck a long ways, have to keep the feeders up or she would make quick work of the birdseed!


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## passthebottle (Jan 22, 2011)

Yep, all alone, seldom seen this far north in Maine , close to the Canadian border


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## Wheelah23 (Jan 22, 2011)

Never too early to prepare for Thanksgiving, or maybe Easter! Fatten this one up for sure! MMMM!


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 22, 2011)

Hey passthebottle,...That's not a bird I've ever seen at our feeder!,...Very cool. We have them around our woods too. I snapped a couple pics of our feeder today...Hope you enjoy these too.


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 22, 2011)

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## JOETHECROW (Jan 22, 2011)

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## towhead (Jan 23, 2011)

Nice pix!  Hey Joe, is that bird in the last pic green?  What is it?  -Julie


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## passthebottle (Jan 23, 2011)

Hi Julie , that looks like a cardinal, the males are red remember.  The squirrel at the birdfeeder reminds me of the war my father had with them over the course of 3or 4 summers, he used to get so mad at them at the feeders that he used to trap them and then take them out for a nice long drive somewhere miles away. This one particular squirrell even had a nest in his barnworkshop and when he finally trapped  him he got his nice long drive miles into the wilderness, swear to God, it was back the next day MAD AS HELL, and churpping and chattering and telling Dad just what he thought of him. I think Dad lightened up to him abit after that either that or just gave up[][]


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## RICKJJ59W (Jan 23, 2011)

I love to feed the animals,I treat them like one of the family.
  Move over! Mary!!


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## passthebottle (Jan 23, 2011)

[][][] Hey Rick I see that you are on top of the food chain, like the "Lion King"


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 23, 2011)

> Nice pix!  Hey Joe, is that bird in the last pic green?  What is it?  -Julie


 
 Julie,...Yes, it's a cardinal, but the drab (compared to the male) female, when the underfeathers are exposed like that, they have sort of a "camo" effect,..and look greenish,....which is probably a good thing, because when there's a hawk around, it usually zeros in on the bright red males...[8|] Your pics are pretty cool too.


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 23, 2011)

> ORIGINAL:  RICKJJ59W
> 
> I love to feed the animals,I treat them like one of the family.
> Move over! Mary!!


 

 Hey Rick,...Watch out for that big buck behind you!   [sm=lol.gif]    [sm=rolleyes.gif]


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## RED Matthews (Jan 23, 2011)

Hello and thank you passthebottle;  The FORUM today seems to be showing a lot of humor and fun.  Good relaxation.  I had to tell you that when we are in NY for the summer I put out about eight bird feeders and two squirrel feeders that have a little round table with on an outward triangular board with a vertical spike up through the center.  Out from the table there is a two vertical short sticks and a little bench seat.  After you put a previous years corn cob with the kernels still on it, down on the spike. the squirrels set on the seat and eat the corn.  

 I also put out a couple antique glass fly traps with a dead minnow or two and water in the trap and a piece of corncob for a cork.  It keeps the fly population down by a few thousand dead fly's each summer.   RED Matthews


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## towhead (Jan 24, 2011)

Thanks Passthebottle and Joe, I don't think I've seen a Cardinal around here. 

  Ha Ha Rick!

 Red, I'd like to see a pic of the squirrels at the table!

 A have a couple squirrels too.  Sometimes they will be rolling around the deck fighting like a couple of crazed wrestlers.[]   And then, I usually only have one....the other moves across town or something  -Julie


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 24, 2011)

Julie,...Here's some male cardinals on the feeder this morning.


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 24, 2011)

It was  minus 17 degrees this morning,...They're all puffed up to stay warm.


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## towhead (Jan 24, 2011)

Wow awesome Joe.  No, I definitely don't have those birds.  And, looks like you have the cold weather now!  Was -40 here with wind chill.[]  -Julie


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## SAbottles (Jan 24, 2011)

-40 !! Julie, here in Cape Town those are figures I can't even wrap my brains around !!

 Joe, those Cardinals are really lovely, but if they're feeling the cold like that, tell them to fly out here & I'll save them some space on the Yucca tree !


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 24, 2011)

We try to keep them fed,....we even recycle our bacon grease,....render it down and pour it over a mesh rectangle, and while still liquid, you just pour the bird seed into the pan....once it's all set (we usually just set it outdoors to resolidify)...you can hang the whole "block" out on the tree for them...It brings a lot of birds.      Dale,..I'm sure they'd love a vacation in your neck of  the woods...[]


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## mr.fred (Jan 24, 2011)

FYI--Joe---i just Sent a large flock of  Black birds your way!------Get more feeders ready[8|][sm=lol.gif][sm=lol.gif]


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 24, 2011)

I think they're here Fred!....[]


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## towhead (Jan 24, 2011)

Yeah SA, you can toss a glass of water into the air and it crystalizes!

 And yeah Joe, I'm sending "my" Blue Jays yer way too!!  -Julie


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## ecotramper412 (Jan 24, 2011)

Those male cardinals have to work pretty hard for that red color, birds don't produce it naturally, its acquired through berries and such. The seeds and berries that supply the carotenoids (generally) aren't too nutritional for them, so they have to eat what they can to get by but then work additionally hard to obtain the redness. 

 Whoever is the most red gets the girl because it shows the ladies that they can survive in the harsh world, but they are also healthy enough to spend loads of energy obtaining the carotenoids to show off. And like Joe said, it doesn't get easier, they just work that hard to become a target for the hawks.





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## JOETHECROW (Jan 25, 2011)

> Joe, I'm sending "my" Blue Jays yer way too!!  -Julie


 

 Julie,...we have a lot of Blue Jays....(They're cousins of the crow) and just as agressive,...but hey, I suppose they gotta eat too! []


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## JOETHECROW (Jan 25, 2011)

> ORIGINAL:  ecotramper412
> 
> Those male cardinals have to work pretty hard for that red color, birds don't produce it naturally, its acquired through berries and such. The seeds and berries that supply the carotenoids (generally) aren't too nutritional for them, so they have to eat what they can to get by but then work additionally hard to obtain the redness.
> 
> ...


 



 Great info Dustin,...I remember reading some about that before, about the diet, vs. how bright they become...(We have one that must be REALLY popular with the ladies,) because he's super bright "beacon" red, and you can see him a mile off,...He's pretty cautious at the feeder, I've yet to get a good photo of him...compared to his coloration, the other males almost look dull.


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## SAbottles (Jan 25, 2011)

OK Joe, I give up.  "Your birds is bigger than mine" as they might say on the playground!!
 The thought of that lot landing on my little Yucca tree boggles the mind ! []


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## Stardust (Jan 29, 2011)

Joe  that's a great tip if people eat bacon to add the seeds~
 Also I love your feeder, it looks like an old one. Most cardinals are ground feeders.
 I would love to get one of those feeders that go right into your window so it's like they are in the room
 with you. They are very $$$$. Right now I can't see out the windows and miss the birds.

 Thanks for posting everyone ~ "birds of the feather stick together " my mom used to say that all the time.
 I'll have to look it up... ; ) Have a good day everyone.


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## Stardust (Jan 29, 2011)

THE BIRDS QUOTE.


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## Bottles r LEET (Feb 18, 2011)

Cute!


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