During last year’s frigid winter when the temperatures were falling below zero and we were experiencing double digit below zero wind chills, Pat and I were concerned about the birds.
We never had bought any bird seed to put out.
Oh, we did throw out bread crumbs and that sort of thing on a regular basis, particularly when it was pretty cold or wet and cold weather.
We hadn’t considered ourselves any kind of bird watchers by any means.
She and I have always watched the birds from time to time and made comments about them, but that was about the extent of it.
But last year’s historic, major winter snowstorm that we experienced has given us more appreciation for our feathered friends.
We now pay more attention to the birds, especially when the weather gets like it did last weekend and on New Year’s weekend as well.
The 20 pound bag of wild bird seed I purchased a year ago has gone a long way. I’m still using it and will be for quite a while.
I throw plenty of it out for them, too.
Last Saturday afternoon during some light snow flurries, they were flocking to it.
Again on Sunday morning after I first got up, I looked out and there were five crows munching on it.
They didn’t stay around long, though, and it didn’t take long for others to take their place.
We spotted cardinals, bluejays, some sparrows, and they seemed to be enjoying it.
Our knowledge is limited to the different types of birds that are around our yard. An expert or dedicated bird watcher would know the various species.
We are familiar with sparrows, robins, cardinals, doves, bluejays, crows, hawks, owls, and what to us are black birds. There are others that frequent the yard from time to time, but the little sparrows, cardinals and robins are our chief concerns.
Something else that people forget is water is really important to these birds. I have a fresh pan of water on our patio for our pooch, Bailey, and I change it out daily.
That also provides a water source for the birds.
In looking at this week’s forecast, I knew it was going to be cold again with lows well below freezing. In fact, today’s high is forecast to be below the freezing mark as well.
There may be an outside chance of snow, but the cold and stiff northerly winds are our major concerns.
Even though we may not be serious bird watchers, we have more appreciation for them than we did before a year ago and we know it’s gratifying to help these birds.