Birds at the Feeder

Because DW and I limit our time away from our home—shopping and kayaking seem to be the few exceptions—we've been spending more time in our backyard. Sure, a couple of years ago we added a gazebo and a fountain, and DW herself takes the time to beautify our backyard living space, but until this year, we've never really spent a lot of time in this little oasis.

DW added two bird feeders to the backyard: a hummingbird feeder, situated on a post right against the back of our house, next to the window where I sit to watch TV. So far, no hummingbird has found this feeder, and so DW has cleaned out the sweet nectar and it hangs merely as a decoration piece.

She's also hung a squirrel-proof seed feeder, which is hung on a lower branch on our chokecherry tree, just above the bird bath that has adorned our garden for nearly as long as we've lived here. This feeder has attracted all sorts of passerine creatures: chickadees, house finches, purple finches, goldfinches, cardinals, and even some downy woodpeckers.

The robins, grackles, and starlings have also tried to land on our feeder but their sheer size makes it awkward for them to reach the seeds. If a couple of them alight on the feeder, their weight closes the feed openings—the mechanism that is used to detract squirrels. A few starlings have landed below the feeder, where some seeds fall as smaller birds make a mess while eating, but a couple of them have fallen prey to our cat, who roams within this space.

DW loves to sit in the yard, particularly in the late afternoon, when most of the birds come for dinner. With her mirrorless camera, she has captured some outstanding shots—maybe, I'll see if she wants to do another guest Wordless Wednesday. I've also taken some photos with my DSL-R, but lately I've been capturing video.

I've placed a clamp on the same branch as the chain for the feeder, and I've hooked up my 360-degree camera on its invisible selfie stick. Connecting my smartphone to the camera, through WiFi, I can control the recordings. The camera is less than a foot away from the feeder, and some of the finches have looked at the camera suspiciously. But for the most part, they don't seem bothered.

Here's a video of a goldfinch, snacking away until another bird barges in.

We've observed some of the birds seemingly fight over a particular perch—there are four spaces from which to feed—but didn't have the video camera set up at the time. I'm hoping to capture more antics over the months: it's too bad that the birds don't take direction.