Provide shelter for nature’s creatures
Giving a hand to nature’s creatures is such a delight; their trust is humbling, and their antics keep one in stitches much of the time.
If laughter is good for the soul, mine is blessed indeed. When I toss out the small daily ration of sunflower seeds in the designated area, the wild turkeys come running, as well as opportunistic chickadees, nuthatches, juncos and other songbird visitors, and to watch them hopping unafraid among the turkeys’ big feet is a kick. But funniest of all are the family of Pine Jimmies (Western red tree squirrels).
They have always been convinced that the largesse of seeds is for their consumption only, and they dart in and out trying to equally chase away the turkeys and to salvage some cheeks-full of seed for their winter storage. One brash fellow actually “charges” the songbirds – which simply flutter a few feet and continue to dine with aplomb. When he (or she) goes up against a turkey, however, he becomes the “chargee” and is usually chased to the nearby brush-pile/haven where he pulls himself up to full height and cusses all and sundry out in an impressive stream of squirrel invective.
Every morning is full of laughs – and I know how lucky I am to have made this small charge part of my life schedule.
I’ve written often in these columns encouraging readers to make the effort to feed the winter songbird population – but there’s more needed than just that – such as the pine Jimmys. Winters can be hard here, and a little time making a brush-pile for protection will garner rewards for you as well as the creatures you’re helping.
Along with the all-winter stayers, many short-term visitors – grosbeaks, waxwings and others - will fly in sudden great flocks into your Mountain Ash trees and Serviceberry or Elderberry shrubs to feast on the dried/frozen berries for a day or so, then sweep away again as suddenly as they came. They are quick to locate the seed-feeding spots, as well as my basket feeders under the eaves. If you don’t have feeders out and do have a possible feeding spot, consider helping the birds out this winter. A high, protected location with nearby tree or shrub cover is best and a roof or overhead protection is needed to guard against snow or rain. My choice is large, tightly-woven baskets which I hang from bicycle hooks under my eaves. I have a hooked “lifter” to take down and return the new-filled baskets easily, no there’s no hardship involved. These high locations, with access only to winged visitors, deter cats, squirrels and large, dangerous birds such as crows or hawks, so the little birds are safe from predation under the steep eaves.
With our entire environment experiencing horrors that seem to just keep coming, birds, bees, butterflies and other flying, migrating creatures are vanishing at an alarming rate. If you don’t put up feeders, please help out the visitors with suet blocks or even breadcrumbs or crusts. Use good grain-type bread if possible, and never sugared or artificially sweetened items. There are many other things you can do to help: Augment your outdoors by filling that unused birdbath or empty planters with dried sunflowers, rose hips, apple cores, dried corn on the cob, peanuts in the shell (for visiting jays) – and of course, birdseed. Suet feeders provide needed extra protein, but rather than spending money on them, simply make some (no-salt) peanut butter pinecones with real no-additive peanut butter. With or without peanuts is ok, and one can simply spread the peanut butter into the cones or even scrape it with a spatula into the cracks of heavy-barked trees (the birds and I and God will love you for this).
And don’t forget the bats! They are of much more importance than most people credit; vital in many cases. Bat Conservation International reports bats are so essential that without them, thousands of other plant and animal species could die out – threatening entire ecosystems from rain forests to deserts. Yet many people still fear and persecute bats, exterminating whole species.
Remember, bats are NOT flying mice that carry disease and get into peoples’ hair, nor are they blind. They seldom transmit disease to people or pets and our concerns with them should be no different from any other wild animal – simply leave them alone and do not handle them. They are among the most gentle, beneficial and necessary animals on earth, eating insects (enormous amounts of mosquitos), pollinating flowers, and (farther away) dispersing the seeds that make the rain forest grow.
One of the most important night-flying predators, they take out many insects which are crop pests and some that spread disease to people and animals. We have about 15 species of bats in our north Idaho location, all of which need a safe place to live. Bat houses are an ideal solution, as are unused outbuildings, and even brush piles around the property that provide a year-around home for birds, chipmunks, possibly raccoons, and hopefully a hibernation area for the bats as well.
So there you have it, folks! The smallest wildlings are depending on us! Make this cold winter a little easier on them with a little food, some simple shelter, and lots of love!
(Editor’s note: For many years, Valle Novak has written gardening and cooking columns for the Daily Bee. “Weekend Gardener” and “Country Chef” became renowned for their humor, information and common sense advice on how to do everything from planting to cooking. While she recently retired, she has shared a number of columns to delight her many fans. This is one such column.)
