February 2024

THE FLOCK NEWSLETTER

 

New Feeder Alert:

Breakfast Bell Mealworm Feeder

This cute little feeder is made of clear, durable plastic and has an adjustable weather guard to protect your mealworms from rain or snow! A great addition to any birdfeeding set-up, your small songbirds will appreciate it. You can put any type of loose food into it, but it works best with mealworms, Bark Butter Bits®, a no-mess seed blend, or our Bluebird BugBerry® blend. Get yours today by stopping in. We are always here to help you with you birdfeeding needs!

 

What's been happening in our yards:

Pine Siskin Palooza!

As the winter continues to bring snow and cold temperatures Michigan’s winter migrants move more southwards. Staff member Nicki has been enjoying flocks of Pine Siskins coming to her window feeder. These little guys enjoy snacking on sunflower chips or Nyjer® seed, just like their cousin the American Goldfinch! The trick to differentiating between the two is the heavily streaked underside of the Siskin, compared to the dull white of the Goldfinch. Siskins also have a bright yellow wing bar.

 

Upcoming Events

Thursday, February 1st from 7 PM to 8 PM (in-store)- The History of Bird Feeding. Learn about why we started feeding our feathered friends.


Thursday, February 8th from 7 PM to 8 PM (in-store)- All About Owls. A great program that teaches you all about our earliest nesters of the season!


Sunday, February 11th from 11 AM to 12 PM (in-store)- The Love Life of Birds. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, everything you need to know about breeding and nesting habits of birds.


Thursday, February 15th from 7 PM to 8 PM at the Brighton District Library- The Love Life of Birds.


*Check your email for other sales, promotions, or nature happenings in our area.

Where is Laurel?

In 1994, Congressman John Porter wrote a resolution into the congressional record declaring that February should be honored as National Bird Feeding Month. To jumpstart this momentous month for the birds, Laurel has developed, and will be teaching, an educational program here at the store entitled “The History of Bird Feeding”. Love is also in the air this month with Valentine’s Day coming up so Laurel will be teaching “The Secret Love Life of Birds” right here at the store, too. After all, what better way to embrace this dedicated month for the birds than by learning more fascinating facts about our feathered friends. She will also be out in the community teaching bird programs for the Hardy Plant Society and the Brighton Public Library.

 

Bird Nerd Corner:

Beautiful Eastern Bluebirds!

 

Eastern Bluebirds change their feeding ranges in winter, and they favor more wooded areas during colder weather, since that’s where all the fruit and bug larva tend to be. But you can always try to attract them any time of the year! Our customer A.B., who wanted to try out our new Breakfast Bell feeder, and they had some bluebirds visit within a few hours! Other great ways to get these blue beauties to your yard include adding a heated birdbath or offering a birdhouse. Right now, they are looking for nesting areas. If you have any fun bird experiences, or pictures you want to share with us, please send them to our email at [email protected].

 

Save the Songbirds:

The Great Backyard Bird Count

The year 2024 marks the 27th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, a massive citizen science project that begins February 16th and will go through February 19th. This helps researchers at the Audubon, Cornell Lab of Ornitherapy, and Birds Canada collect data and gain insight on population numbers, distribution, and other environmental information. Last year there were over 300,000 participants that helped gather data throughout the world. This year you can help by taking as little as 15 minutes watching your backyard and recording what you see or hear.


There are phone apps out there that can help with identifying and recording what birds you have been seeing, like eBird and Merlin. Anyone can participate, so if you are a novice, or an expert, you can make a difference! This is the largest study of its kind and has helped researchers discover some bird populations that have been moving northwards and expanding their distribution. For example, some of our locals like the Northern Cardinal, Tufted Titmouse, and Carolina Wren are becoming more common in our area and have started populations in Canada and up into New England, where they have never been before!


Sometimes rare bird sightings can be studied more closely with the snapshot the Great Backyard Bird Count provides. In 2022, a gaggle of Snow Geese numbering 300,000 was monitored in Missouri and a Stellar’s Sea Eagle was spotted in Maine. Both were amazing sights, considering they are not normally found in those areas. All sightings are uploaded to a map that updates in real time, so you can see what other people are observing. So take some time today, or during the event, and watch the birds outside because you might see something unique that someone hasn’t seen before! Learn more at https://www.birdcount.org/participate/.