Wild birds at Four Country Gals

Rarely mentioned, but an integral part of our little piece of desert is our wild bird population.  We’re fortunate to have numerous species nesting as well as visiting on their migrations from north to south and back again.

We have several different bird feeders in our front yard, and several large trees for all sizes of nests. Because we have such natural habitat, to date we’ve not built any specialty bird houses. Things could change, though, if we thought we could attract even more wild birds.

Our largest resident bird is a Golden Eagle who roams over about a 50 square mile area. We often see him perched on a telephone pole looking for some unsuspecting varmint to swoop onto and carry off to his nesting spot.

Next are several Bald Eagles, who have a nest just down the road. We have seen young eagles as well as mature Bald Eagles. Imagine my surprise a couple years ago just after a winter snowstorm. I looked west out our sliding glass door to see three Bald Eagles, a Golden Eagle, and several Ravens and Crows on the ground. The eagles were sharing a large jackrabbit, while the ravens and crows were politely keeping their distance. I’d say the total distance from our house to them was about 300 feet, still well withing our property line.

A couple years ago, a pair of Long-eared Owls nested in the big pine tree at the southeast corner of our house. What a sight! They were so used to us being around that they would allow us to stand and ogle at the little grey/brown fluff balls.

We had gotten Mom a puppy for her 80th birthday, and just as the puppy needed to go out during the night for a potty trip, the owls were getting flying lessons, and the parents were looking for food. As quiet as the owls were, we had great concerns for the puppy, always keeping her on a short lead.

Other raptors that come to visit include Sharp-shin Hawks, Cooper’s Hawks, Red-tailed Hawks, and American Kestrels. We welcome them as they help keep the rabbit population in check. Another tasty treat for them is what we call “chislers” (a distant cousin to the prairie dog). These little critters can tear stuff up faster than we can get it built.

Mom operates a “wild bird feeding station” in the front yard, and we’re sure the word has been passed along the migration routes. Each year we enjoy many different species including sparrows, wrens, finches, robins, swallows, doves, cowbirds, and grackles. We could do without the last two, but apparently we get a “package deal”.

Some birds only drop by every few years. They include the blue birds who passed through the area the other day, and the wild canaries. We’ve also seen an occasional meadow lark, both Western and Cassin’s kingbird, Black-billed Magpie, the Mockingbird, and the Red-Winged Blackbird.

Our favorites are the hummingbirds. We have Ruby-throated and Black-chinned, as well as the aggressive Rufous hummingbirds. Again, because we are outside quite often, these little clowns treat us to quite a show most of the day and evening.

Just like Mom’s Hen House, the wild birds are “her domain”. That means we build and maintain the feeding stations, or purchase them, and we buy the bird seed and sugar for the hummingbirds. How much is that? We go through nearly 100 lbs of bird seed per month, and up to 100 lbs of sugar for a season of hummingbirds.

In return, the birds provide hours of enjoyment, awesome bug control, and critter control. They are an integral part of our stewardship program.

To attract more of the birds to the garden area, we are going to inter-plant, and ring our garden with “bird friendly” sunflowers and herbs. That way, they’ll also be available for the occasional ravaging insect.

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