Hi everyone! Welcome back! It has been a busy and exciting week for me because I travelled to
the city to see the birds in my brother’s backyard! I also started to experiment with different
ways to attract birds using homemade bird feeders. I’ve been looking forward to sharing my
observations with you and I hope that you’ve been feeling inspired to watch for birds in your
own backyard.
Let’s talk about big city birds. While I was in the city, I didn’t see many different kinds of birds,
but I did see so many pigeons. Have you seen a pigeon before? They are so neat. I spent some time observing them and a noticed a few things.
Their colours are amazing! The pigeons I saw
had shiny purple and green feathers on their heads that changed colour depending on how the
light hit their feathers. This is called iridescence; it means that the colour depends on the angle
it is viewed from, kind of like a soap bubble where you can see shifting colours on the outside.
Their bodies were grey, and their eyes were an orange-red colour. The wings were much lighter
grey than the body but with dark bands. Another thing I noticed was their size. They are quite
large, bigger than any bird that I’ve seen at my home feeder.
As for their behaviour, they were
spending time hanging out together in a big huge group. There were more than I could count.
When they noticed that I was watching them they all flew up into the air at once and began to
fly around. They didn’t fly away though, and they didn’t scatter to different places, they passed
over my head, back and forth up and down in coordinated movements, all together. I was
fascinated watching dozens of birds move together so quickly and smoothly, they each used
their wings in the same manner to stay in a tight formation. I wondered how they knew where
to go, who is the leader? Their flocking behaviour reminded me of a school of fish, they swim in
a similar manner, keeping close to one another but never getting too close into another’s
space. Many types of birds also flock together when they migrate for the winter, taking turns
and using the wind to make flight more efficient and less tiring for the group.
Even birds that are very common are fascinating to learn more about. Pigeons and humans
have a long history together. In fact, pigeons are one of the first types of birds to ever have
been domesticated. Some pigeons even carried messages like a mail carrier. This may explain
why pigeons thrive in the busy city full of people. Although they may avoid humans, they feel
comfortable to be in close proximity. Pigeons also enjoy eating seeds, grains and food that
people leave behind. They are very social with one another, intelligent and excellent navigators.
One of my favourite pigeon facts is that they mate for life. This means that they stay with their
partner pigeon year after year and raise young chicks together, usually two chicks at the same
time. It’s common for pigeons to make their nests on high buildings, especially ones with
balconies. Have you seen a pigeon before? They are found in most major cities.
Back at home I worked on making some more feeders for my backyard. As we know, birds eat a
varied diet and different types of birds prefer different foods. Generally, birds eat seeds, nuts,
fruit, insects and berries. I looked in my fridge and cupboards for something I could use as a
feeder. I wasn’t trying to make anything complicated, just to experiment and have some fun. I
ended up using an orange, an apple, some peanut butter, peanuts, twine, sticks and an old
wreath along with some seeds I had been filling the feeders with. I scooped out one half of an
orange and put two sticks across the open half to make a perch, I filled the center with peanut
butter and sprinkled it with seeds. Then I did the same for the apple but used one stick so that
it would hang vertically. I used twine to string slices of orange and peanuts, and then I tied
everything to the wreath to make a bird mobile. I think it looks pretty cool. I’m hoping that the
birds are attracted to the brightly coloured fruit, the scent of the peanut butter and the
delicious seeds. I hung it from a tree in an open space and chose the location specifically so
that I can see it from inside through my window. This will let me see if there is any interest
from my local birds. It’s getting pretty cold out, so I hope the peanut butter won’t melt too
quickly. You could also spread peanut butter on a pinecone, roll it in seeds and hang it from a
tree branch.
I hope you’re feeling inspired to get crafty and make your own bird feeder. I will report back on
whether or not anyone visits mine. In the meantime, I will be outside watching for migrating
geese and birds. It’s starting to get cold and many birds are making their way south for a
warmer winter. Next week we will talk more about who will stay and who will go for the winter
months. Hope you enjoyed the blog! Happy bird watching!