Winter Notes

It is bitterly cold today and the birds were already at our feeder before daylight broke. Three crows descended on our yard, probably remembering that my husband throws out some peanuts every morning. They've been stopping by more and more often. Perhaps they figure that the best food is the food that takes the least effort to find.
How do our backyard birds survive the frigid nights, other than fluffing out their feathers? They roost, I'm told. They huddle together to give each other warmth or hide in tree cavities or vacant bird houses. Brush piles and evergreen bushes also provide habitat for birds. We had to cut down a shrub last fall and threw it at the edge of our hill side. That brush pile is now teeming with sparrows, juncos, and wrens. Shelter is also important for birds to hide in when our resident hawk lurks around.
In the morning birds have to replenish the energy they expended throughout the night. That's why our feeders are busiest in the early morning hours. Late afternoon is another busy period. While birds cannot afford to totally rely on a particular feeder (they would be doomed if you moved away or went out of town) it is important to keep up the feeding throughout winter once you started feeding birds.