Plant it and They Will Come

The serviceberry has quite a few desirable features: a beautiful - if not very brief - spring bloom; red berries that are a favorite source of food for many birds; and a russet colored fall foliage. It is also called Juneberry for good reason. Its berries are ripening already, and it isn't even June yet. Cedar waxwings are checking out the berries for ripeness several times a day and we have even spotted robins and cardinals tasting them. It seems as if we hit the spot by planting a serviceberry. That's what happens when you plant native plants instead of aliens.

Backyard Bird Sightings

In my presentations I am telling people how to garden for the birds. Case in point: Our serviceberry is growing berries right now, and the cedar waxwings are already checking them out. Of course, once I grab my camera they perform a disappearing act. I plan on setting up my blind soon to await their return. Or perhaps I'll wait till the berries are ripe...
Another exciting sighting is a Baltimore oriole. I hung up our oriole feeder and hope to lure them into our yard.
I finally took down our bird feeder today, after it became too big a draw for grackles. Between our shrubs, flowers and the bird baths I hope we will lure them into our yard nonetheless. And I kept a few sunflower seeds to bribe the birds when I want to photograph them.

Brief Update

I did not do much birding last week, for a reason I explained in my other blog. One afternoon I was in our backyard photographing birds. My highlight was a white-crowned sparrow. They visit our feeder every spring for a short period. I also saw a male ruby-throated hummingbird.
Yesterday, my husband observed a Baltimore oriole flying through our yard. I am sorry that I missed that one, as they are quite beautiful with their bright orange color. I am never sure whether to hang up an oriole feeder or not. They don't seem to stay around.

Birding Friday

This morning my husband and I finally spotted the first ruby-throated hummingbird at our feeder. Usually they arrive here around May 1 and I was getting worried they may not show up.
On a whim I decided to participate in a guided bird walk today at Sewickley Heights park. I was hoping to get some tips on where to find birds. Highlights of our (very long) walk were: Blackburnian warbler, yellow-rumped warbler, hooded warbler, Kentucky warbler, American redstart, red-eyed vireo, scarlet tanager, indigo bunting, bluebird, and a Cooper's hawk. Not bad for a couple of hours of birding. I also learned that the best way to see warblers is to search for them in sun-lit tall trees. All in all it was an enjoyable outing and I took away some great advice about the habitats of different species.