Volume 26 Issue 5 | September/October 2019

BIRDS’ MULTI-TOOLS:

SupplementalIn this Feedingissue...... 1 Chirps...... 2 Staff Picks...... 2 Product Highlight...... 2 MealwormsFancy feet! Bird Anatomy...... 3 +September/October Seasonal Notes Seasonal Notes...... 4

BLOOMINGTON SUPPLEMENTAL FEEDING By Minnetonka Manager CAROL CHENAULT 816 West 98th St. (Clover Center) Bloomington, MN 55420 Versatile Treats: 952.884.4103 Many birds—not only orioles and bluebirds—enjoyMealworms EAGAN mealworms and will benefit throughout the year from 2143 Cliff Rd. (Cedar Cliff Shopping Center) the protein, fat and fiber they provide. Eagan, MN 55122 Mealworms are actually the larval form of the mealworm beetle, 651.459.0084 also known as the darkling beetle. They are not slimy but MINNETONKA rather easy to work with. Serving mealworms will aid your birds 4759 County Rd. 101 throughout the winter cold and into spring reproduction and (Westwind Plaza) summer nestling and fledgling feeding. Minnetonka, MN 55345 Birds attracted to mealworms—in the winter and throughout 952.935.5892 the year—include cardinals, nuthatches, chickadees and WHITE BEAR LAKE woodpeckers. During Minnesota’s spring and summer, 2703 East Cty. Hwy. E. mealworms also benefit Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, orioles, (Cty. Rd. E. and Hwy. 120) bluebirds and Scarlet Tanagers. White Bear Lake, MN 55110 651.653.8705 Live Mealworms Dried Mealworms Since their movement attracts Dried mealworms are very WAYZATA & WILD BIRD DELIVERS attention, birds seem to versatile and never spoil. They 15710 Wayzata Blvd. prefer live mealworms. Live can be mixed right in with your (394 Frontage Rd.) Wayzata, MN 55391 mealworms should be served birdseed in a hopper, tray, tube 952.473.4283 in a smooth-sided cup or or dish-style feeder. Sprinkle container with 1-2" high This flower-style dish feeder dried mealworms with Purchase dried mealworms WILDBIRDSTORE.COM sides. Live mealworms is both pretty and practical olive oil for extra nutrition. in a bucket or a pouch. for serving mealworms. Bird’s-Eye View is published need to be stored in the In the spring and summer, to share the joy of backyard birds refrigerator. Using a window feeder brings the soaking the dried mealworms in nectar and with All Seasons Wild Bird Store’s birds up close for excellent viewing! serving them in a dish feeder attracts orioles. customers and friends.

All Seasons Wild Bird Store | Your Windowlocal backyard to Nature birding | WILDBIRDSTORE.COM experts | WILDBIRDSTORE.COM ❈ page 1 CHIRPS STAFF PICKS By Minnetonka Manager CAROL CHENAULT My First Favorite Bird Best Mealworm Products We started feeding the birds when Our Picks I was a very young boy growing up in Bloomington, near the Minnesota 1. EASY MEALWORM FEEDING 1. River bluffs. Wildlife and birds were For really easy dried mealworm feeding, select a suet abundant due to the lush habitat cake, seed cake, bell or seed cylinder that includes dried and mature oak trees surrounding us. Being that I was young, I was also into mealworms within the product. Shown: Mealworm and watching Saturday morning cartoons and Peanut suet cake by Pacific Bird and Co. one of my favorites was a show called Woody Woodpecker. 2. DROLL YANKEES: BO’S MARMALADE FEEDER Woody was best known for his cackling, Great for offering treats to orioles and more. The cup 2. laughing call and to this day, that’s the is easily removable for cleaning and is made of durable thing that I remember the most about him. polycarbonate. Use this feeder to offer grape jelly, Something like this: Haa-ha-ha-ha-haaa, an orange half, or mealworms to a variety of birds. haa-ha-ha-ha-haaa, hahahaha-haaa. My love of Woody only increased after 3. HANGING ORIOLE FLOWER FEEDER 3. I first saw my real life Woody Woodpecker, With perching areas shaped like the petals of a flower, the enormous and impressive Pileated this oriole feeder provides pegs for orange halves Woodpecker. They weren’t common in our and an orange plastic bowl for serving grape jelly, live neighborhood, but every once in a while you’d mealworms, or dried mealworms soaked in nectar. see them attached to or fluttering between the large oaks. Their call sounded nothing like the cackle of Woody, but I learned to discern Photo by Bob McFarlin it from a distance and could readily recognize it after a while. It was always very exciting whenever I’d PRODUCT HIGHLIGHT By Guest Contributor MELISSA BLOCK spot one and try and follow it through the trees. We didn’t use suet to feed the birds back then, so the Pileated wasn’t common Upside-Down Suet Feeders in our yard or at the feeders, but I loved them Favor Clinging Birds; Discourage Grackles and Starlings more than any other bird at the time. Now, it’s very common to attract them to suet and 1. GREEN SOLUTIONS UPSIDE-DOWN SUET FEEDER peanut feeders and yet I still get very excited The Green Solutions recycled upside-down feeder holds every time I spot one. one standard-size suet cake and is made from 10 plastic 1. There is certainly something extremely alluring and timeless about these majestic containers. Because this bird feeder is made from birds. They have a beauty that’s striking, yet durable recycled plastic, it’s virtually maintenance free. it’s easy to see how they could be related The feeder screens have rust-resistant polyester powder- to something much more prehistoric. I’ve coat finish, so clean-up is easy. Guaranteed never to always wondered what the creator of Woody fade, crack or split. Fasteners are stainless steel for Woodpecker was thinking when he conjured extra durability. the cackling character for the cartoon. Or maybe he just heard the laughing call and 2. BIRDS’ CHOICE RECYCLED DOUBLE UPSIDE-DOWN took it from there…Haa-ha-ha-ha-haaa, haa- SUET FEEDER ha-ha-ha-haaa, hahahaha-haaa. This is a great suet feeder to discourage pesky birds. 2. Woodpeckers can cling upside-down to eat the suet. ~Dave Netten ❈ Other birds, like starlings, grackles, and crows can’t access the suet because they can’t cling upside-down. Join the Conversation! It has a vinyl-coated grid that the birds can cling to. Facebook.com/WildBirdStore It holds 4 suet cakes and is easy to fill by simply lifting Twitter: ASWildBirdStore the roof. Made from recycled plastic and milk jugs, it’s guaranteed to never crack, split, or fade. Includes Instagram: AllSeasonsWildBirdStore a hanging cable.

All Seasons Wild Bird Store | Your Window to Nature | WILDBIRDSTORE.COM ❈ page 2 BIRD ANATOMY By Guest Contributor MELISSA BLOCK Bird feet: AVIAN MULTI-TOOLS Pause to consider the functions required of unique in that they can also rotate one toe forward, so they have various birds’ feet: perching, clinging, walking, three toes forward and one toe backwards for perching. swimming, preening, carrying objects, egg Toes of Clinging Birds rolling, mating displays, and even heat loss The toes of clinging birds, such as woodpeckers, are arranged differently from perching birds. They have zygodactyl feet, which regulation. It turns out that a foot’s functions means that two toes face forward and emerge as an arrangement of the toes. two toes face backwards. Owls and most parrots also have zygodactyl feet. The Toes Do the Work This foot shape allows these birds to Birds are considered digitigrade, which means that they generally climb up, down and along the trunk of walk on their toes, not on their entire foot. Most birds have 4 toes. a tree, and to hang upside-down. How these toes are arranged will tell us a lot about their habits. With this zygodactyl arrangement, Toes of Perching Birds woodpeckers can access upside-down Songbirds are considered suet feeders while most other birds perching birds. They have cannot. An upside-down suet feeder Pileated Woodpecker: zygodactyl (clinging) foot independent, flexible toes, can eliminate suet raiders like Red- with one facing backwards and winged Blackbirds, starlings, grackles and crows, since they cannot three facing forward, best for cling upside down as easily as woodpeckers. grasping perches. This is called anisodactyl. A “Hybrid” Foot When perching birds sit, a White-breasted Nuthatches hang upside-down, tendon on the backside of their but do not have zygodactyl feet. Instead, you Pine Siskin: foot automatically flexes, locking anisodactyl (perching) foot might classify nuthatches as perching/clinging their toes around a perch, like a hybrids: their toes are still arranged as a branch. When their feet are in this position, their toes are locked perching bird, but they have an extra large claw in place—so sleeping birds don’t fall. As the bird stands up, on one backward-facing toe that allows them the tendon releases. to keep a grip better than most other perching Toes of Water Birds birds. ■ Water birds, like ducks, have webbing between their toes for swimming. Gulls TYPE OF FOOT TOE CONFIGURATION (Right Foot) also have similar webbed feet to provide Anisodactyl more surface area for walking in soft mud (perching foot) 3 2 4 near water. cardinal Wading birds, like herons, have long 1 toes which help spread their weight over A Snowy Egret uses its a large area to help walking on soft yellow toes as lures surfaces near the water’s edge. The Snowy Egret has bright yellow Zygodactyl (clinging foot) toes that it wiggles as lures to attract fish. 2 3 2 3 Toes of Raptors 4 Raptors, like hawks, eagles, and owls use their large claws to 1 4 1 4 capture, kill, and carry prey with their feet. Owl feet are even more woodpecker owls and Osprey

All Seasons Wild Bird Store | Your Window to Nature| WILDBIRDSTORE.COM ❈ page 3 SeasonalBy Minnetonka Manager CAROL NotesCHENAULT September : WEEK BY WEEK Week 1 2nd Week 3rd Week 4th Week ✓ Orioles leave Minnesota to overwinter ✓ Now is the peak bird migration ✓ Some Blue Jays migrate ✓ Fall color shows red in in the neo-tropics. over Hawk Ridge in Duluth. south out of MN but Virginia creeper vines, ✓ Migrating hummingbirds will continue ✓ Ruby-throated hummingbirds others from Canada will sumac and red maples. to visit nectar feeders into October. leave northern Minnesota but be here all winter. ✓ Birdbaths may ice over In-shell Peanuts are a ✓ Wild Turkeys, Wood Ducks, Blue Jays more southern at night. favorite food for their and Red-bellied Woodpeckers feast parts of the state will ✓ Watch for the arrival of winter caches. on acorns. continue to see them. White-throated Sparrows ✓ The first Dark-eyed as they feed ✓ Crows gather in communal groups. Indian meal moths are very Juncos arrive. on the ground ✓ Watch for Cedar Waxwings gobbling activeTip: in September. Store your under the bird mountain ash trees’ ripe orange fruit. seed in tins on the deck, in the Sprinkle Finches’ Tip: feeding stations. ✓ Warbler migration continues: garage or in the shed. To remove Choice on the ground for ✓ Groups of Common Loons look for Chestnut-sided and moths, install a sticky trap Juncos and returning native gather on area lakes in Magnolia Warblers. specifically for Indian meal sparrows. moths (sold in our stores). preparation for migration Switch to Golden Safflower while to the Gulf Coast or gracklesTip: and red-wings are flocking in Atlantic Seaboard. migration. It is less appealing to them. October: WEEK BY WEEK Week 1 2nd Week 3rd Week 4th Week ✓ Watch for migrating waves of American ✓ Late season butterflies ✓ Turkey Vultures ✓ The majority of eastern chipmunks Robins and Cedar Waxwings. They like clouded sulfers, red glide southward have begun hibernation. love a fresh birdbath! admirals, painted ladies overhead. ✓ Goldfinches are in their ✓ Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned and a few monarchs can ✓ Common Loon brownish winter plumage Kinglets appear in woodlands as they be seen on New England migration peaks but many will visit feeders migrate. The last of the Yellow-rumped asters and Mexican in mid-October all winter for Golden Warblers, Palm Warblers, vireos, and sunflowers. but can continue Safflower and Nyjer & Chips. flycatchers leave MN for the winter. into December, Give your feeders a good ✓ Ripe crabapples are a treat for depending on ✓ Large flocks ofRed-winged Blackbirds cleaningTip: before winter. Use a migrating American Robins. available open and grackles migrate overhead. solution of one part bleach to ✓ Listen for the Tundra Swans water. ✓ Franklin’s Gulls remain on area lakes 10 parts hot water or a mild migrating high overhead. into November. solution of dish detergent. ✓ Fox Sparrows, White-throated It’s time for heated birdbaths. ✓ White-lined sphinx moths feed on Clean feeders inside and out, Tips: and American Fill your heated birdbath with white hosta and petunias in daylight hours. including all feeding ports, Tree Sparrows vinegar and let it soak overnight in the ✓ perches, lids and platforms. MN loses 3 minutes a day of daylight join Dark-eyed house. Scrub it out to remove lime in October. Take your Vitamin D! Rinse the feeders with clear water for at least 10 Juncos feeding on deposits and rinse before returning it outdoors. Fill heated birdbaths with Take time to clean out or take down seconds and make sure that Finches’ Choice on cold water to reduce evaporation and yourTip: birdhouses. If you leave the houses it’s completely dry before the ground under ice formation along the edges. up over the winter, open the side/bottom refilling. We offer abird feeder bird feeders. of the bird house to prevent mice from cleaning service if you’d ✓ Waterfowl migration Add some dried mealworms and suet winter nesting. rather have us do it! is in full swing. pellets to any seed mix for an extra energy boost.

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