Re the milo seed--yes, there was an interesting publication based on a feeder-food preference study set up through the Citizen Science program at CLO to document what seeds were preferred. That was when the clear geographic difference in use of milo was documented. Interesting--some of the same species, such as mourning doves, were involved across a wide range. But Eastern ones didn't like milo, Central ones did, as I recall.
I will try to find the study. Anne On Jan 3, 2013, at 11:01 AM, Glenn Wilson wrote: > I just talked with the manufacturer of Garden Treasure bird seed distributed > by Lowes. > > The highlights for me were: Pretty much all Thistle feed comes from Myanmar, > Ethiopia, or India. > > There is a trade embargo against Myanmar now so current seed comes from > Ethiopia or India. > > Every companies feed that comes into the US goes through one of two cleaning > plants, one on each coast. > > I’m not too clear on the process these plants perform but I know they heat > the seed and attempt to remove chaff. > > From there, these two plants sell to seed manufacturers or in this case, > importers. > > I was told the problem I am most likely having is mold due to the seed’s > moisture and 1) plastic packaging, and 2) temperature cycling. > > We are in the process of trying to track down the date code of the bad seed > and have it removed from the shelves. > > He was Very knowledgeable and Very kind. > > > > One other interesting tidbit I gleaned from the conversation, although Milo > is a less-expensive filler seed up north here, it is a preferred seed in > Arizona where many of the birds are ground feeders. > > > > Glenn > > Endicott, NY > > www.wilsonswarbler.com > > > -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
