by Ryan Ponto | Jul 13, 2017 | Bird Netting
How’s this for a happy problem: Several North Jersey backyard birders report that downy woodpeckers have been hogging the sugar water in their hummingbird feeders this summer.
What nerve!
Most folks view the interlopers more as a phenomenon than an irritant, but after asking around, I’ve found that the freeloading is fairly widespread, and it has likely been going on for as long as there have been hummingbird feeders,
A quick search of my old emails found that a reader had written to me seven years ago about the problem and — heaven forbid — I never replied. Think of this column as part belated apology and part how-to article.
Don Torino of the Bergen County Audubon Society says that “it seems in the last few years downys at hummingbird feeders have become very common. Some folks seem a little frustrated at times but most think it’s a very interesting behavior.”
Torino’s solution for the frustrated folks: “Put up an extra feeder and enjoy the hummers and the woodpeckers together. It shouldn’t be about trying to control wildlife behavior. Just sit back and enjoy the show.”
When you think of it, hummingbird feeders are the very definition of an attractive nuisance — a source of free sugar water for any insect, bird or mammal that can find its way to the feeder.
That means not just ants and bees and downy woodpeckers but such freeloaders as squirrels, Baltimore orioles, house finches and (in Arizona) even bats. If white-tailed deer figured out a way to mooch the sugar water, you can bet they’d be there, too.
As a birder in Oakland reports: “I have had a downy at my feeder all summer, and now the red-bellied is there as well. The little hummer has to wait his turn.”
Concerned that the interlopers are drinking too much of the sugar water and your neighborhood hummingbirds aren’t getting their fair share? Tired of refilling your hummingbird feeder all the time? Here’s some advice.
The secret to success with feeders of any kind often involves design, and it turns out that hummingbird feeders come in all sorts of nifty shapes and sizes to ward off unwanted spongers.
For example, if ants are a problem, you can buy feeders with little moats. (Last time I checked, ants were lousy swimmers.)
If other mooching birds are a problem, you can buy a hummingbird feeder without any perches. These feeders look pretty cool, like large Christmas ornaments.
As for bees, I am told you should avoid feeders with those little yellow-flower accents. (I once had a feeder like that, but a bunch of rowdy squirrels deflowered it.) It seems that red attracts hummingbirds, but the fake yellow flowers draw wasps and bees.
Other birders have reported that squirrels are raiding their hummer feeders as well. That raises the question: How do you keep squirrels away from hummingbird feeders?
The answer is the same for all feeders: Make the feeder harder to get to (think “baffles”), and then pray a lot. I have found that like telemarketers, squirrels are nearly impossible to get rid of, no matter how hard you try.
Tiny tasers, anyone? (For the telemarketers, of course. You didn’t think I’d … )
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jul 12, 2017 | Bird Netting
We have talked about the activities of nature’s little critters in the past, but it never ceases to amaze me as to what can happen in an instance.
Last week, while on vacation, I was sitting on the porch taking a break from some chores, and my wife was behind camp working in her flower garden.
Earlier, she had been filling the bird feeders and had taken a piece of suet, about half the size of a golf ball, and placed in on the ground while she refilled the cages.
Well, shortly following that, a chipmunk came out of his den, which he has many entrances to in the area, and began enjoying the morsel of suet. However, a nearby woodpecker decided that it was his, and began pecking at the chipmunk’s head. The chipmunk was undeterred by all of this and continued to eat the suet, despite taking quite a beating from the woodpecker.
Meanwhile, two mourning doves landed nearby, and decided to get in on the action. They began to approach the other two combatants, sneaking in from behind the woodpecker. At that point, I thought to myself, “this will be interesting.” Unfortunately, my wife was not aware this was going on and came around from behind the camp and began to say something to me. At that point, the confrontation broke up. The chipmunk scooted off to his den, and the three birds flew off in their own directions. We’ll never know how that would have turned out.
Later, that evening, I noticed the chunk of suet was no longer on the ground, so one of them won out on that fight.
But that was nothing compared to what we witnessed on Saturday. It was a beautiful day, and we were out on the lake to take in some fishing. There was a bass tournament going on that day, so many boats and anglers were in the area. At one point, we saw a small bass, about 12-inches in length, floating in the water, obviously dead. We left it, citing that the circle of life would come into play, and some bird of prey, an osprey, bald eagle, or even a sea gull would come along and scavenge that up.
One of the things we did notice in the almost three hours we were fishing was that there were no birds present in the crystal blue sky. Usually, they are all around us.
Finally, at one point, we heard the call of a bald eagle, although we could not see it. I summized it was perched in a nearby tree and possibly warning us not to approach the dead fish, which it possibly had its eyes on for lunch.
The fish was floating approximately 15 yards away from our boat when a bald eagle came swooping down from a nearby tree and flew parallel to the water – maybe five feet from the water level – for about 20 feet, extended its talons, picked that fish right from the surface of the water, and proceeded, at the same altitude, down the shoreline and disappeared around a bend into a cove.
I have seen bald eagles scoop up fish from the lake before, but not from that close a distance. It goes without saying the scene was spectacular. Bald eagles are massive birds.
Even when you think you have seen all Mother Nature has to offer, something like this comes along.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jul 11, 2017 | Bird Netting
The red-cockaded woodpecker is an endangered bird, and approximately nine call the 1,700-acre W.G. Jones State Forest near The Woodlands home.
The birds are mostly spread out across Southeastern states, and officials with the Texas A&M Forest Service do what they can to ensure the forest is in good condition for the birds to thrive, said Donna Work, Texas A&M Forest Service biologist.
“In this forest, sometimes they stay where you put them, and sometimes they don’t,” Work said. “They kind of mix around and find their place in the population.”
To maintain the environment for red-cockaded woodpeckers, forest officials keep up with mulching, spraying herbicide and burning the midlayer of plants in the forest, when necessary. This maintains an herbaceous ground covering for bugs, which are a large part of the bird’s diet. Removing the midlayer of flora also protects the birds from rat snakes and other predators, Work said.
To rebuild the population in Jones State Forest, some red-cockaded woodpeckers were translocated—or safely moved—from Louisiana in 2014, Work said.
“In our case, we really needed something to enhance our gene pool because we’re kind of isolated here and kind of stagnating,” she said.
Red-cockaded woodpeckers have declined in population due to habitat loss, Work said. Although birds were moved to the state forest, no hatchlings were born last year. However, three-fourths of the birds that were moved in 2014 have remained in the forest, she said.
Forest officials continue to monitor nest activity and check in on the family groups, which consist of one breeding female, one breeding male and one or two helper birds, said Work, adding there are approximately four family groups in the forest.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jul 10, 2017 | Bird Netting
The importance of good genetics in racing pigeons cannot be understated. The foundation stock of South Africa’s renowned pigeon racing loft, Kitchenbrand’s Loft, is a case in point.
Co-owned by Mark Kitchenbrand, the Kitchenbrand’s Loft’s Ace Pigeons are bred for performance and speed, and the loft’s incredible gene pool is sourced from the best genetic stock worldwide.
The genetic strength of top racing pigeons will secure results on race day. As such, ambitious fanciers are continuously on the hunt for top genetic pigeon stock, which results in them often purchasing offspring from the same foundation stock.
Therefore, the genetic composition of champion Olympiad pigeons in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, for example, may often intertwine, making them distant relations of each other.
Because they are also sellers, the offspring of foundation pigeon stock owned by top breeders such as Pieter Veenstra, Jan Hooymans, C&G Koopman (Dutch champions), Alfons Klaas, Hardy Krüger, and Gaby Vandenabeele (Belgian champions), are bred into the racing pigeon population by them and various other buyers.
Speed
Olympiad pigeons are categorised according to the following: best sprint-, middle-, or long-distance racers, and all-rounders. However, regardless of the distance, the pigeon that flies the shortest route home, at the highest speed, will always be the winner.
Kitchenbrand bought the now champion all-rounder, Birdy, for R800 000 at the South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race (SAMDPR) auction in 2007.
Birdy was awarded the SAMDPR 2008 Knock-Out Competition Champion, Grand Average Ace Pigeon, and Hot Spot Average Ace Pigeon titles , and has passed her extraordinary genetic strength on to her offspring.
Bred in SA since 2008, Birdy’s offspring are amongst the world’s most powerful hereditary transmitters, producing top results: Birdy’s first six direct offspring all bred multiple first prize winners. Four of her direct offspring were in the top 200 in the 2011 Sun City Million Dollar Race.
While Kitchenbrand thus has access to Birdy’s superior genetic line through her offspring, he recently acquired some of Stefaan Lambrecht’s sprint pigeons, currently the fastest pigeons in the world.
Birdy and Harry
Dutch pigeon racing champion, Jan Hooymans, bought Birdy in October 2015. Since then, famous Dutch Ace Racer, Harry, a blue cheque cock owned by Hooymans, has been mated to Birdy.
None of their direct offspring have been put on sale.
Harry is one of the best racers in the world, after winning two races against 22 340 and 37 728 pigeons, and scoring third place against 21 520 pigeons. Harry’s progeny won against 11 337 pigeons, and a grandson won against 44 293 pigeons.
Key genetic links
As a result of their outstanding genetics, Harry and Birdy’s progeny should be phenomenal racers. Both Harry and Birdy are related to renowned pigeon foundation stock: Harry was bred from the genetic foundations of C & G Koopman and Gaby Vandenabeele.
Birdy’s dam is closely related to the same Louis van Loon and Janssen brothers pigeons used in the formation of the C & G Koopman genetic pool. In SA, Birdy was mated to top bird, Zander, bred by
Dutch champion, Pieter Veenstra. Veenstra’s birds have a strong C & G Koopman foundation.
Birdy’s offspring with Zander thus have a golden link to the Janssen birds, as the base birds in the Veenstra loft also connect with this line.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jul 9, 2017 | Bird Netting
A Missouri man has a fish story that he will likely be telling for years.
Monroe MacKinney, 22, was fishing at his parents’ pond on My 31 when he caught a most unusual bass, reports the Daily Mail.
When he went to remove the hook, he noticed something peculiar inside the fish’s mouth.
“I went to lip him so I could remove my hook and that’s when I saw something in its mouth, MacKinney explained. “I didn’t know what it was and I almost dropped the fish back in the water. I was hesitant to remove the hook, but upon further inspection I realized it was a mole inside the fish’s mouth.”
The rodent was fully intact, looking like it just emerged from its hole. Except that it was dead.
“I had no idea how the bass got ahold of a mole,” the young fisherman continued. “I was speechless – I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I knew I had a once-in-a-lifetime catch, and I couldn’t pass up the chance to get a few pictures of it.”
Fish that feast on land animals is rare, but not without precedent.
For example, there are catfish in Australia who have been known to eat pigeons, reports an article in New Scientists. “Lesser salmon catfish,” as they are called, occasionally ambush pigeons at the water’s edge. But more often they eat animals when they drown.
In a survey of 18 lesser salmon catfish from Ashburton River in northern Australia, almost half had mice in their stomachs.
Two of the fish had three animals each in their stomachs, and some fish had up to 95 percent of their stomachs filled with small mammals.
The primary prey in these cases was spinifex hopping mice, which do not enter water voluntarily. “These mice often live in small colonies within a single burrow system,” says Erin Kelly of the Centre for Fish and Fisheries Research at Murdoch University, Perth, who led the research. Therefore, “collapse or flooding of one or multiple burrow systems along the Ashburton River could have inadvertently introduced them into the water.”
And though a few freshwater fish species are known to dine on land vertebrates — African tigerfish have been filmed plucking a swallow out of thin air, for example — it is rare for them to eat so many.
But the lesser salmon catfish aren’t the only fish who have been reported to eat non-aquatic animals.
Trout in Idaho have been found with rodents in their bellies. In a trout population survey done at the Silver Creek Preserve, biologists catch trout to get their weight and measurements, reports the website Cool Green Science.
During each survey, the researchers sample the contents of select trout stomachs to see what they have been eating. As they opened brown trout stomachs during a survey in 2013, they found montane voles, which are small rodents common along Silver Creek.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
