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Birds and Ice



Hello all,

The Northern/Baltimore Oriole has braved the ice storm and seems more relaxed
than ever in my garden - maybe I'm more relaxed that he seems to be settled in
for the winter!  Since he didn't bail out Thursday morning after the ice storm,
I think he'll be hanging around.  Of course, he's doing some gourmet dining
which I'm sure helps.  His first choice is sugar water from a large hummingbird
feeder he can perch on.  I'm faithfully taking it in a night so it won't
freeze.  He's arriving about 7:15 AM and if the hummingbird feeder isn't out,
he'll eat at the homemade suet hanging nearby until I get the sugar water out.
He and every other bird in the yard prefer the homemade over store bought suet
which they only eat as a last resort.  Now if I can just get the starlings and
grackles to move to another yard ....

This special winter visitor is a new experience for me and it has certainly been
a pleasure these last few days to see his beautiful colors.  He's made the cold
house and no electricity a little more bearable.  Those of you with hummingbirds
must feel the same joy and appreciation - I hope all of you still have your
special winter guests.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker returned about a week ago and loves the pecan
tree.  All of the other birds have been very busy at the feeders too.  They all
seem to cope much better than we humans in the face of this winter weather
stress.  Guess it's all a matter of perspective - Attu was by choice!

Hope everyone will soon be back to normal with only minor damage - sadly, we'll
have memories of this storm for years to come because of the tree damage.

Happy birding,

Lena Gallitano
Raleigh, NC