Cat TV! We have a lot of that here :0) I've done my best to attract birds to my yard. I also keep a copy of 'Sibley's' near the window so I can look up the birds I don't recognize. My favorites are the Indigo Buntings and the Goldfinches. I mush have 10 different feeders out there (not counting the hummingbird feeders). The cats enjoy watching them so much (and I do too).
I plant things with berries and shrubs that lend themselves to hiding little birdies. I planted crepe myrtles and nandinas near the bird feeders so they can hope to and from those to the feeders. I have a variety of trees around and tons of flowers. With the extreme drought we are having this summer here in north alabama the birdbaths are by far the biggest hit. My neighbor says she sits on her back porch and just watches all the birdies fly to my yard LOL I'm really wanting to add a water feature to the yard with shallow pools and waterfalls. That may be my project for this fall. Birds just flock here when I run the sprinklers. I get lots of nests around here too. I have a number of bird houses - some like the houses and some like the trees and shrubs. We have wonderful red-headed wood peckers and red finches. I keep peanut feeders too and the chickadees and blue jays and some other birds eat those peanuts as fast as I can put them out there. We also have Towhee's and Rose Breasted Grosbeaks. Sometimes I see as many as twenty doves out there at one time. I have bluebirds too! If you REALLY want to get into trouble -- go to Wild Birds Unlimited (I notice your Friend's email mentions WBU too). I went into that store the other day and KNEW I was in trouble. http://www.wbu.com/ elizabeth On 6/30/07, Susan Dubose <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
When I moved to this new house, a few months back, I was determined to make it as wonderful for my cats as I could. They deserve it. Below is an email from a client of mine that has a bird sanctuary in his backyard, as well as a Koi pond that I tend to when he & his wife are out of town. There are some good tips to attracting birds for my cats to enjoy, plus it helps the birds. Being this is Texas, hopefully some of the info will help anyone on this list who would like to attract more birds........ Dear Susan, I get my stuff at Wild Birds Unlimited: Westwoods Shopping Center <http://stores.wbu.com/austinsouth> 3267 Bee Caves Road, Ste. 121 <http://stores.wbu.com/austinsouth> Austin, TX 78746 <http://stores.wbu.com/austinsouth> When Isabelle was alive I did not try to attract birds into the yard because she was such an efficient killing machine. After she died I started to try to attract birds into the yard. The basics include food, water and cover along with sustainable gardening. A few years ago Kay started to deliberately plant varieties of flowers, bushes and vines on which butterflies nectar and lay eggs. The commonest plants for eggs are passion vine for Gulf Fritillary and pipevine for Pipevine Swallowtails. She continues to add other varieties as she finds them in nurseries and we have over 30 species of butterflies in the yard on a casual count. We have always had nesting titmice, cardinals, mockingbirds, Carolina wrens, jays along with hummingbirds in the summer. I have plenty of *cover *, being adjacent to the woods next door, along with the Agarita bush and all of the perimeter plantings of youpon and boxwood. I have several sources of *water* which is always moving. I have a small sprayer which drips into a cup about a foot off the ground, and an Indian metate into which water constantly drips. These are surrounded by plants affording some protection. I have the large disappearing fountain that seems to be favored by the goldfinches although others bathe in it. The birds like shallow water which is moving and they like the little splash in the urn which I had disconnected when you were coming to lessen water loss from splashing. They like to get in the wet boxwood leaves from the splashing of the urn and bathe too. I get *food* at WBU. The wrens like the meal worms and so do the titmice. I have then in an *exclusion* feeder so that the mockingbird cannot get in; he has a tendency to run everyone else off. He makes a good meal out of some of the butterflies and caterpillars. The thistle seed in a yellow capped feeder attract specifically the goldfinches. I first saw them here when some of the flowers would go to seed. With the feeder they are here year round and have raised babies which depletes the thistle seed at a rapid rate. The green feeder is used by the jays, cardinals, titmice and house finches. The spring is set to discourage the white wing doves and squirrels. I note that the ruby throated hummingbird prefers blooming flowers over the feeder. This past winter a rufuous hummingbird showed up at the green sunflower feeder when we had the ice storm. That is when I got the hummingbird feeder and put it out. At first I thought that I was too late, but a few days later he came back and stayed about a week before going back to the northwest for the spring. He usually winters in south Austin, so I was pleased to have him here. During the spring we had a chipping sparrow, a magnolia warbler, an orange crowned warbler and a yellow warbler. . So, with food, water and cover I believe you can increase the number of birds in your yard; it the cats are a problem try butterfly gardening; cats are not much of a threat to them. g Susan J. DuBose >^..^< www.petgirlspetsitting.com www.tx.siameserescue.org www.shadowcats.net * "The storm can't down the castle,* * it can only shift the stones."* ------------------------------ Don't pick lemons. See all the new 2007 cars<http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html;_ylc=X3oDMTE0OGRsc3F2BF9TAzk3MTA3MDc2BHNlYwNtYWlsdGFncwRzbGsDbmV3Y2Fycw-->at Yahoo! Autos.<http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html;_ylc=X3oDMTE0OGRsc3F2BF9TAzk3MTA3MDc2BHNlYwNtYWlsdGFncwRzbGsDbmV3Y2Fycw-->
