At least here in NE MN, we had an abundance of rain (we are about 10" above normal for the year). I have about 9 acres of open land, upon which I have planted a number of different wildflowers over the years. They did extremely well, along with the grasses and have produced along with them, a great number of seeds. This past weekend, I filled up my bird feeder with flax seed. Chickadees were coming in to feed but I also noticed many feeding on wild sunflower seeds as well. I had a lot of Juncos moving through this weekend as well. Besides more natural food, another factor could be that we have had fairly mild weather, with no frost event yet, so they may be less inclined to leave yet.
I would be curious to see what others are observing. Regards, Uwe Kausch –Duluth Township -----Original Message----- From: Minnesota Birds [mailto:MOU-NET@LISTS.UMN.EDU] On Behalf Of Alan Stankevitz Sent: Monday, October 09, 2017 6:07 AM To: MOU-NET@LISTS.UMN.EDU Subject: [mou-net] Lack of Birds at Bird Feeders Since August, our bird population at our feeders has been way down here in SE MN. Others in Houston County who regularly feed birds are also noticing the same scenario. I do see and hear a few chickadees, titmice, woodpeckers, blue jays and goldfinches but currently only the goldfinches seem to be eating regularly at the feeders. I have been on the lookout for predators such as hawks and kestrels, but haven't noticed any depredation as the cause. I'd be curious to know if this is only local to our area, or elsewhere in the state. We have had other years where things slow down during this time of year, but never to this extent. My speculation is that food is in abundance right now and that most birds are feeding naturally. Last year due to a late freeze we had very little (if any) tree nuts, but this year nuts are in abundance. Alan Stankevitz Mound Prairie Township Houston Co. MN ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
