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AgentOrange
01-05-2012, 11:10 AM
What is in your backyard today?

25

TNRabbit R.I.P.
01-05-2012, 12:48 PM
Snow.

And a squirrel. Pics not taken~

SteveLeopard
01-10-2012, 08:22 PM
Typical stuff today. White breasted nuthatch, Brown creepers. Red bellied w peckers

kingman R.I.P.
01-12-2012, 11:01 AM
Tree rats...big bushy ones!!! :pirate:

TNRabbit R.I.P.
03-10-2012, 11:57 AM
Found this unusual little guy stealing suet from the bird feeder yesterday; I've seen two blacks squirrels in my life...he's the second one. He's been around here for a few weeks...

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/Wildlife/DSC04210.jpg

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/Wildlife/DSC04212.jpg

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/Wildlife/DSC04216.jpg

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/Wildlife/DSC04220.jpg

AgentOrange
03-10-2012, 05:25 PM
Damn, never seen one.
If we lived closer I would come over, trap and steal it!

Douglas
03-10-2012, 10:52 PM
Never seen a black squirrel before! Thanks for showing us the photos Gary.

Yesterday we had somewhere around 30 Robins in our back yard. Have a feeling they must be migrating northbound.

AgentOrange
03-10-2012, 11:06 PM
.
Yesterday we had somewhere around 30 Robins in our back yard. Have a feeling they must be migrating northbound.

Maybe, but my guess is - NO !!!

Robins flock in Winter, often with birds like Wax Wings. Here in winter some days it looks like a scarey Alfred Hitchcock movie. They separate in Spring. I don't think many if any migrate. They are great birds. They like berry bushes and like all birds -> insects. They don't care much as to seed, but you can lure them on to the porch with home made suet mixes.

The best way to attract them is with water.


In Summer they can become quite tame.

Douglas
03-11-2012, 06:15 AM
Thanks Bill. Your knowledge about birds is a wonderful thing. :) I'd never seen that many Robins in one place before. Funny you should mention "a scary Hitchcock movie" because my wife said the same thing! We see them in Spring and Summer, but only a few. We have a bird bath in the back yard, and will see Robins there often during the summer.

Last Summer, with the high heat we had down here, had to fill that bird bath 3 or 4 times a day. We have a crepe myrtle tree in the center of the back yard and in the early evenings, would turn on the sprinkler so it would oscillate back and forth covering the tree. One of my favorite things is to watch the birds in that tree. They love to take a bath when it's so hot.

TNRabbit R.I.P.
03-20-2012, 08:47 AM
That little bastard stole my suet feeder! Can't find it anywhere....

Douglas
03-20-2012, 09:30 AM
That little bastard! They are very smart, and can steal anything you put out if it's not chained down. It could have been a raccoon too. They are even more smart than those squirrels.

TNRabbit R.I.P.
03-20-2012, 09:47 AM
It was way out on a TINY limb of the tree where the seed feeder is. It WAS chained down & the chain is still dangling~

Douglas
03-29-2012, 09:15 PM
365
Damn Squirrels!! Can't leave a beer sitting for two minutes!!

TNRabbit R.I.P.
03-29-2012, 09:58 PM
The f*ckers broke my SQUIRREL PROOF bird feeder this week. It's unrepairable! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

kingman R.I.P.
03-29-2012, 10:09 PM
Mr. confortable.....

jjptkd
03-29-2012, 11:57 PM
Had a woodpecker in the yard today but didn't have the good camera on hand, maybe he'll be back tomorrow, beautiful bird, spent a good half hour on the snag today, fun to watch.

jjptkd
03-30-2012, 12:00 AM
Mr. confortable.....

He was in your back yard? I thought I lived on the rough side of town!! :witless:

AgentOrange
03-30-2012, 10:41 AM
Red-bellied wood peckers show up at daylight in my window feeder by the bed - drives the cats crazy.

Here is a Red-headed that has not yet showed this year. He is on some firewood I drilled holes in and pack with home made suet. All my Wood peckers, (also have Downy, Hairy, Yellow-bellied, Pileated, and Flicker) eat the suet mix. The Yellow-bellied and Red-headed are seasonal migrants here.

367

AgentOrange
03-30-2012, 02:24 PM
That little bastard! They are very smart, and can steal anything you put out if it's not chained down. It could have been a raccoon too. They are even more smart than those squirrels.

Yeah, have a Coon raiding me. Unlike squirrels, they hit at night. I get them from time to time. I trap them and move them to the nearby park/boat landing about 5 miles a way.
This one is drinking my Hummingbird feeders dry among other things. They are cute as hell, but tear up my stuff, so I catch and move them. This one will not go into the trap. Maybe he is a returnee I caught before.

TNRabbit R.I.P.
03-30-2012, 02:27 PM
I'm sure your neighbors to live 5 miles away appreciate you delivering raccoons to their back door~

AgentOrange
03-30-2012, 03:31 PM
I'm sure your neighbors to live 5 miles away appreciate you delivering raccoons to their back door~

It is down on Core owned property - that is why I take them there. I don't want people hurting them. I like them, but they don't mix in a yard with 20-30 bird feeders. They need to live somewhere and most never know they are around.
I live out a ways, plenty of room for them around here.

This morning before day light Rosey was going crazy wanting out. I could smell a whiff of Skunk out there, so no way. Nothing is less fun than hauling your dog in the shower with cans of tomato juice.

AgentOrange
03-31-2012, 08:12 AM
Finally caught him last night.

Douglas
03-31-2012, 08:24 AM
Finally caught him last night.
The Coon or the skunk?

AgentOrange
03-31-2012, 08:42 AM
I don't worry about the skunk. It would be too hard to get him out of the trap. Skunks are actually good for a garden as they eat grubs. They also are poor climbers, so not much of a problem.

Douglas
03-31-2012, 09:19 AM
LOL, yeah, don't think I'd want to catch a skunk in a live trap! Getting him out could be a real problem. :D

simpleman
03-31-2012, 10:55 AM
Rain,Rain,Rain,Mud,Mud,Mud........................ ..........I'm so sick of rain. Supposed to break an all time rain record today. OH Boy. I'm so happy about that. Have to put the shepherd out for his morning duties and it's pouring again. I'm going nutzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.:frown-new:

angelod307
03-31-2012, 01:13 PM
a pool full of swamp green water....

simpleman
03-31-2012, 01:49 PM
No bullfrogs and lillypads ? :)

Douglas
03-31-2012, 02:27 PM
Send it on down here to Texas. We still need for Lake Travis to come up another 31 feet!

simpleman
03-31-2012, 02:50 PM
Tell Ratheon to fire up The H.A.A.R.P. and to start directing all of these low pressure systems down your way ! :)

http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=oZBSj9LbMFs#!

AgentOrange
03-31-2012, 05:57 PM
Shame on all my YardCrap friends who don't have their HummingBird Feeders out.

They hit the SC coast a week ago. 4 out of the last 10 years they have arrived in my yard on April 2nd. Maybe some years they were here and I did not see one. Anyway, with this being a Leap Year with an extra day added in Feb to throw us off (not them), they might arrive on April 1st as sort of a joke.

I am ready. Get yours out there. The little guys will have just accomplished an incredible feat and a free meal is the least we can do.

Here is a photo of a beautiful, hungry female I took with a point and shoot camera. They get tame and you can have fun with any camera, or even a phone camera.

368

Mix the feed 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. If you don't have a feeder, A small bowl will do until you get to town.

simpleman
03-31-2012, 06:40 PM
Why should I bother ? The rain drops are bigger than they are !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:(

Douglas
04-04-2012, 09:41 PM
We must have some tough squirrels down here in texas! Got home from running errands this afternoon, and look what I found!
379380381
The little bastard squirrel had been up on top of the squirrel buster bird feeder several times this week, gnawing on the top. Never dreamed he could chew through aluminum! Sent an email to the manufacturer. They have a lifetime warranty, so hope they will replace the top. We must have some tough squirrels down here in texas!

simpleman
04-05-2012, 12:05 AM
God bless Texas ! LOL

AgentOrange
04-05-2012, 03:49 PM
If you have to replace it, I recommend one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/Droll-Yankees-Flipper-Bird-Feeder/dp/B00004ZB4U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333653931&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Droll-Yankees-YCPW180-Whipper-Feeder/dp/B00068562I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1333653317&sr=8-2

I have had a couple each for many years. The Squirrels and raccoons have not damaged them.

Here is the difference in them:

- the Flipper uses a rechargeable battery. When a critter tugs at it, the platform spins. It works really well. The battery charge last for months, but as it is a battery, will eventually die and my guess is that replacement would be high. My batteries are dead, but they did last for years. Mine are situated so Squirrels can not get to the food, so they still work for me.

- the Whipper lets each perch dip when anything heavy lands on it. It will not hold as heavy a bird as the Flipper. Cardinals and Gross-beaks eat at mine, so no big deal. It would not support a Dove or Grackle. In the future I would just buy this one.

Both of these are durable and work well. Each hold about 5 pounds of seed and have 4 stations at the bottom. Tons of Sun Flower seed have gone through mine, and they have been worked over by creatures for years. They are still working - except the battery.

They also have one called "Dipper". It is made as a hopper style millet feeder and while the top is identical to the two above, the mechanism tips too easily. I find ways to use it, but do not recommend it.

Douglas
04-05-2012, 08:39 PM
Thanks Bill. I'll check those out. Hoping they will send me a replacement part.

Douglas
04-08-2012, 08:12 AM
Got a call from the manufacturer on Friday. They are sending the complete top assembly to me on Monday, so should have it sometime next week. Asked the lady I was talking to about improvements to the top, and she said they were already working on that. Should be out later this year. And if I want a new style top, they will send it to me free! I like that company!

AgentOrange
04-09-2012, 11:03 PM
Got a call from the manufacturer on Friday. They are sending the complete top assembly to me on Monday, so should have it sometime next week. Asked the lady I was talking to about improvements to the top, and she said they were already working on that. Should be out later this year. And if I want a new style top, they will send it to me free! I like that company!

Must be an American company.

TNRabbit R.I.P.
04-09-2012, 11:30 PM
Cleaned out the pond today & planted some pansies & snap dragons. No pics of the flowers, but the pond was FULL of leaves:

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/2012-04-09_13-18-54_808.jpg

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg286/TNRabbit/Around%20the%20House/2012-04-09_13-18-58_942.jpg

Douglas
04-10-2012, 06:03 AM
Must be an American company.
They are a Canadian company.
http://bromebirdcare.com/
Brome Bird Care
331 Knowlton Road
Knowlton, Quebec J0E 1V0
1.800.856.5685 Fax: 450.243.1322

info@bromebirdcare.com (info@bromebirdcare.com)

kingman R.I.P.
04-17-2012, 08:39 PM
Bunch of FN ducks but I'm tired of resizing the photo to the limit...4 times is enough!!!!

AgentOrange
04-17-2012, 08:47 PM
Bunch of FN ducks but I'm tired of resizing the photo to the limit...4 times is enough!!!!

You old farts make Clemson look bad. There are a million free photo tools out there.

I use http://download.cnet.com/Paint-NET/3000-2192_4-10338146.html

kingman R.I.P.
04-17-2012, 09:34 PM
Read between the fingers.....:confusion:

Douglas
04-17-2012, 09:56 PM
You old farts make Clemson look bad.
Ain't that like the pot calling the kettle black though!! :biggrin-new: :biggrin-new: :biggrin-new:

kingman R.I.P.
04-18-2012, 08:22 PM
416Ok...let's try this...

AgentOrange
05-15-2012, 09:21 PM
Got a call from the manufacturer on Friday. They are sending the complete top assembly to me on Monday, so should have it sometime next week. Asked the lady I was talking to about improvements to the top, and she said they were already working on that. Should be out later this year. And if I want a new style top, they will send it to me free! I like that company!

Any update on that?

AgentOrange
08-18-2014, 03:25 PM
I have 3 garden ponds in the yard.
- 125gal
- 220gal
- 4000gal

All are close and are where I can enjoy them from my porch chair.
The 220 is in a raised bed behind my Branch, I call it my frog pond.
Today I see a fat 6 inch snapping turtle has found it.
How in the hell did he get into it? That must have been a real chore.

I don't think he will make a meal off my frogs as they are kinda scarey.