[Tweeters] Black-headed Grosbeak

[Jeff Harrell via Tweeters]

Hi Jim, thank you for your pic and description of your fountain! It's
beautiful.

During hot days we put out water for the birds, but we've tried various
placements in preparation for a fountain and the crows always take it over
and run off all the songbirds from the yard, so we haven't put in a
fountain (also my wife took over the yard for her ducks, which is where I
was going to put the fountain).

Last year we actually had a crow nest in our (very tiny yard with a very
large maple) and when their baby fledged it was a mess. The whole crow
extended family came and yelled encouragement (or something? warnings to
everyone else?) for several days until they all flew off together and left
our ducks and songbirds alone.

Don't get me wrong, I love my crow friends, but they do tend to elbow
everyone else out of the way in our yard. :)

Re: the black-headed grosbeak, I did get a couple of direct emails from
folks close to me that have also seen some recently. Haven't seen our male
in a couple of days though.

Happy Saturday,
Jeff

On Sat, Aug 31, 2024 at 12:03 PM via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
wrote:


>

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------

>

> Message: 1

> Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2024 12:38:44 -0700

> From: Jim Betz via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> To: via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Black-headed Grosbeak

> Message-ID: <a576d8ba-4a7d-48fc-88ad-1d750572f77e at jimbetz.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

>

> Jeff,

>

>  ? You do not mention a fountain.? As soon as we added a fountain to our

> backyard - everything

>

> changed.? And especially so for those mid-sized birds such as Grosbeaks,

> Waxwings, Towhees,

>

> and even the Robins and Stellar's.? Our fountain is a 3.5 foot tall

> "rectangular stone column"

>

> sitting on a large water reservoir that is self-repleneshing.? We have

> the pump on a Casa

>

> switch that can be turned on/off or even programmed from my phone

> (literally from anywhere

>

> in the world).? The end result is that the bubbling (not spouting) water

> is always there when

>

> the birds are around (programmed for sunrise to sunset) - and it is rare

> for there to be even

>

> ten minutes without a bird on it.

>

>  ? The birds may come-for-the-feeder but they return-for-the-water

> ...??? *G*? - Jim

>

>

>

> ------------------------------

>

> Message: 2

> Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2024 13:45:17 -0700

> From: Blythe Horman via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> To: TWEETERS tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> Subject: [Tweeters] Birding Lynnwood Question

> Message-ID:

>         <CAFAz21dHbrXNp=

> zhkfEN9w77yFXzxUomYY9_voKZC08SshSbDw at mail.gmail.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

>

> Hi Tweeters,

>

> I?m looking for a park near the Alderwood area for some decent birding and

> some actual quiet solitude. Everything I?ve found so far has playgrounds

> and/or traffic noise. I?d be most grateful for suggestions.

>

> Also a long shot, but is there any beach access on the sound in the Edmonds

> area that?s not packed with people?

>

> Thank you,

> Blythe Horman, Lynnwood

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> Message: 3

> Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2024 14:34:34 -0700

> From: Jim Betz via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> To: Tweeters List <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Black-headed Grosbeak

> Message-ID: <e875482d-2960-473f-8a76-9a47f32a7528 at jimbetz.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

>

> Hi,

>

>  ? Here's what our fountain looks like ...

>

>

>

> https://eamon.smugmug.com/Family-pics-from-jim/Birds-and-Stuff-from-Jim/n-4Cw3NF/Birds-Web/i-kCgrcff/A

>

>

>  ? A few things for you to notice - first, there is a 'bed of rocks'

> around the base.? Those are covering the

>

> in ground reservoir.? The reservoir is about 3' across and 10-12" deep.?

> There is an "auto-fill" valve in the

>

> reservoir that automatically replenishes the water when the sprinkler

> line is charged (timed valve) - think

>

> "like a toilet valve" in terms of how that works.? Those rocks are on

> top of the lid of the reservoir.? Look

>

> carefully at the top of the fountain and you will see the bubble of

> water - it doesn't squirt or spray, it

>

> merely bubbles - that's controlled by a one time setting of a valve

> between the pump and the block of

>

> rock (the fountain).

>

>  ? To answer Stef - yes, the reservoir does build up algae over time -

> and that eventually plugs the filter

>

> on the intake of the pump.? I have to clean the filter on the pump about

> 3 or 4 times a year.? I do not

>

> clean the entire reservoir and when I go to open it up the water in the

> reservoir is clear - not crystal

>

> clear but definitely can see thru it.? If you look again at the picture

> you will notice "green stuff" on

>

> the rock where the water flows down the side (and recycles to the pump)

> ... that's the same algae.

>

>  ? At least one reason why this fountain has so little maintenance is

> the sheer volume of the

>

> reservoir.? The pump is a standard yard fountain pump and I think is

> about a 1/8th horse pump.

>

> Our yard guys dug a hole big enough for the reservoir, put it in and

> back-filled around it.? Then

>

> they put the lid (top) on the reservoir after installing all of the

> hardware (pump, re-fill valve, etc.).

>

>  ? There is an outdoor power line running in the ground to the pump from

> a GFI outlet with the

>

> Kasa wireless switch.

>

>  ? Look again at the pic - note that there are some leaves along the

> right edge of the picture.

>

> That's a bush that the birds use as the primary waiting place for going

> to the fountain or the

>

> seed feeder that is about 25 feet away and not in the picture. The birds

> also will perch on

>

> the fence and the evergreen bushes ... but far less than the bush with

> the green leaves.? Even

>

> during the winter when that bush is 'nude'.

>

>  ? The whole thing works quite well and the 10-15 minutes I spend about

> once a quarter in the

>

> warmer months to clean the pump filter is the only 'maintenance' I have

> to do.

>

>  ???????????????????????????????? - Any further

> questions??????????????????????? - Jim

>

>

>

> ------------------------------

>

> Message: 4

> Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2024 15:21:15 -0700

> From: Jim Danzenbaker via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> To: tweeters tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> Subject: [Tweeters] Larch Mountain, Clark County migration rocks!

> Message-ID:

>         <

> CAKm_zxF-5HYX2GfWuXV0+zkR9yEM9SjGJ5BWmRRgjbPGEtbQQw at mail.gmail.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

>

> Hi Tweeters,

>

> Just spent a delightful morning with 5 birding friends up at Migration

> Corner, Larch Mountain, Clark County.  Ebird:

> https://ebird.org/checklist/S193315631. Highlights include:

>

> 5 Lewis's Woodpeckers - first sightings this fall

> 3 Clark's Nutcrackers - second sighting this Fall

> 667 individual warblers of 8 different species

> 5 species of flycatchers.

>

> Click counters really helped keep track of numbers. Even so, difficult to

> keep up with the frenetic pace.

>

> Migration rocks!

>

> Keep your eyes and ears skyward.

>

> Jim

> --

> Jim Danzenbaker

> Battle Ground, WA

> 360-702-9395

> jdanzenbaker at gmail.com

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> Message: 5

> Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:38:16 -0700

> From: RW Hamlyn via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> To: "tweeters at u.washington.edu" <tweeters at u.washington.edu>

> Subject: [Tweeters]  Info request Japan

> Message-ID: <BA598E80-2721-4275-95B6-D76418F0B31C at comcast.net>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

>

> This is another reply to Cathy Wisel?s request for information on birding

> Japan in the winter.  Several years ago we did a winter birding trip with

> Zegrahm Expeditions with Mark Brazil.  Mark wrote the book A Field Guide to

> the Birds of East Asia (2009), as well as several other books on Japan.  He

> lives on Hokkaido and works for several companies including Victor Emanuel

> Nature Tours.  Here is a link to his web site:

> https://www.japannatureguides.com/mark-brazil--zegrahm-expeditions/

>  This link includes links to 4 videos my wife Dory and I put together on

> this trip.  Explore his web site for lots in information on birding Japan

> and consider contacting him for more information.

>

> Ray Hamlyn

> xtenter at comcast.net

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> End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 240, Issue 30

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