I have several bird feeders situated outside my office window. During the spring and summer, there are hummingbird feeders, oriole feeders, and a seed feeder. During the fall, we switch out the hummingbird and oriole feeders for suet.
The bluejays stage in the trees surrounding our yard,
waiting for my husband to toss a handful
of peanuts onto our deck. Not technically a feeder, but part of the avian
feeding system he has devised. They fly in one at a time to snatch the nuts with
nimble efficiency from the deck floor and flit away as the next dives in. I
wonder who choreographs this feeding ballet.
The red-bellied woodpecker comes to feed alone. Occasionally
I will see him perched on the weathered wooden seed feeder, but most of the
time, he favors the suet. His balance seems precarious as he grabs the wire
surrounding the suet with his feet and bends his body to peck at the suet, but
he is well practiced and has a firm grip.
During the winter we sometimes get other woodpeckers,
chickadees, juncos, mourning doves, finches, sparrows, and more. It always
brightens my day to watch their entertaining behavior at and around the
feeders.
