Chipping sparrow and song sparrow are back

 Song sparrow(s) returned a few weeks ago; noticed chipping sparrow(s) yesterday.  And course the house sparrows.  Fun!

House sparrows eating Japanese beetles I think! (STILL NEAR-ZERO BEETLE ISSUES THIS YEAR)

While there's an occasional Japanese beetle feasting on bean leaves, it's extremely minimal, to the point that all I do is move them over to the wild evening primrose.  I've been noticing the sparrows (house mostly I think) hanging around in the various vegetation.  Well, today I saw a house sparrow chasing a flying big beetle of some sort -- maybe a Japanese Beetle?  Google says it wouldn't be odd.  Very cool if the sparrows are helping out!

Cucumber beetles continue to be a complete non-issue, haven't seen any other than that one several weeks ago.

Zinnia seeds being eaten! (probably the house sparrows since those are the only birds this winter)

^^^

Hollyhock flower(seed) branches placed into yard for birds

Took the long (very long!) hollyhock flower stems off the front plants and put them into the yard in three spots along the west bed, supported by tomato cages (and most cut in half so that they stay upright).  The house sparrows had been eating them when they were out front, so hopefully someone will enjoy them in the yard as well.

So, if holly hocks spring up in the yard next year, this is why!

House sparrows eating basil seeds! (dried on plant)

Must be quite the flavour punch compared to millet!!

Song sparrows, house sparrows, and junco in yard at same time

Fun!

House sparrows eating hollyhock seeds!

Neat!  There are certainly hundreds if not thousands of seeds on the hollyhocks in front of the house.  Saw them from the kitchen window, right there eating seeds.  Fun!

Birds eating lettuce seeds from the plant

Saw sparrows (house, I think) having a buffet of lettuce seeds from the Ruby plants I let flower.  I've collected a good amount of seeds already; happy to share.

Sparrows galore; millet goes fast!

So fun.  Seeing lots of house sparrows, chipping sparrows (feeding a young'un), and song sparrows.  The occasional goldfinches (they're not as fond as the platform feeder, so not getting tons like I did last year, but too bad so sad).  The millet is going like gangbusters.

So many birds after the storms! Including chipping sparrow!

Several periods of intense rain today, in between which the birds were excited to visit.  At one point, there was a cardinal, a house sparrow, a song sparrow, and two goldfinches!  And at another time there was a chipping sparrow sharing time with a goldfinch.  A song sparrow was quite territorial later, driving away the gold finches.

Great to have today's rain, really needed it.

Birds a-plenty! Goldfinches, house sparrows, cardinals, song sparrows

Fun!  Quite a few visits throughout the day these days.

Removed the new fine-mesh feeder yesterday because the goldfinches had stopped using it and they seemed to actually prefer the big tray.

So, now it's back to the small millet-only tray on one side, and the big tray on the other side offering sunflower chips (fine but passed through mesh first to reduce dust on ground), peanut pieces, millet, and nutrisaff.  I have the green soft mesh seed-catcher tucked right up underneath the big tray to catch the dust and it seems to be working great.

Yesterday evening I put the bird bath back out, saw one taker so far.

Goldfinches have discovered the new mesh feeder; house sparrow visited platform; merlin heard from house

Saw three goldfinches at once this evening. 

A house sparrow visited the platform briefly.

Also, this evening is the second or third time I heard the distinctive calls of a merlin, from the house.  Didn't sound super close by, but, close enough.

Golfinches galore; and song sparrows, house sparrow (female), and chickadee

6 goldfinches in the yard all at the same time!

And on another occasion, a bunch of goldfinches, and a song sparrow, and a chickadee all at the same time!

So fun.

I'm assuming there's also a female house sparrow, but seeing only one at a time, sometimes two maybe, and no males, so I'm not totally sure if these are house sparrows.

House sparrow seen twice

Eating from the mixed seed that I had put out the other day.  However, I've now replaced it back with the millet tray since the mixed seed feeder results in lots of spillage.

Zero sparrows/chickadees; only occasional goldfinches

So bizarre, went from tons of sparrows eating 2 Tbsp of millet a day, to zero.  Not hearing them singing, not seeing them in the yard, nothing at all.  Neither the chickadees.  Did they start to migrate?  Something else?  Hmmm.

I do still occasionally see goldfinches, both at the feeder and at the one remaining sunflower plant.

Also, this year I never saw the white throated or white crowned sparrows of last year.

Goldfinches are back today, but still no sparrows

No idea why the goldfinches came back today, as it's still very hot and humid.

Tray suspended under sunflower seed feeder working on goldfinches' sloppy eating

The goldfinches are so darn messy.  Even though the sunflower seeds are shelled, they seem to be interested in only one bite from each and they toss their rejected portions onto the ground.  So, I now have a clear plastic pot tray thing (nice and big, a few dollars at Ritchie's) hanging under the sunflower seed feeder.  So far so good, it really seems to be catching pretty much everything, and the sparrows come along and happily eat the stuff that falls onto the tray.

Sightings of the rat(s) are much fewer now that the sunflower heads from the mammoths are gone.  The presence of the ground cherries is I'm hoping the only thing keeping them here, plus the shelter they've taken under the kitchen step and in the compost bin.

So many birds! My birdfeeder dream come true

Oh wow this is so much fun!  So many birds coming to the feeder these days.  They obviously aren't bothered by its new spot.

Seeing these -- in various combinations too which is even more fun:

- song sparrows (eating more sunflowers now, bulking up for winter?)

- chipping sparrows with young (eating mostly millet)

- goldfinches (sunflowers of course)

- chickadees (noticed them starting today -- hadn't seen them since several months, maybe they didn't like it against the wall) (sunflower seeds)

- house sparrows (occasionally, and only one at a time)

Many goldfinches visiting; also song sparrows and chipping sparrows, with the occasional house sparrow

The goldfinches are starting to really get into the ripening sunflower heads, which is great especially since I'm not harvesting any myself.

House sparrow pecked at unopened sunflower head

I wonder if they'll be all over them once they've opened?  Surely they would wait until the seeds have formed though?  Didn't seem interested in the one opened sunflower (the daycare one by my chair).