May 09

Celebrating Bird Moms

By Brian Cunningham Birds, Killdeer, Nesting Leave a Comment »

Killdeer Mom on Nest

We celebrate Moms this weekend. As you are celebrating or thinking about Mom or that special lady in your life, keep in mind bird moms.

Killdeer moms sit on the eggs when temperatures are cool and stand over them for shade when it’s too hot. Can you find Mom sitting on the eggs in the picture above?

Here is a picture showing how well camouflaged her eggs are in the nest.

Killdeer Nest & Eggs

As you are celebrating or thinking about Mom or that special lady in your life, keep an eye out this weekend for bird moms that are building nests, sitting on eggs or already feeding fledglings.

Stop by your local Wild Birds Unlimited store to share your bird Mom story or learn more about giving bird Moms a helping hand.

Happy Mother’s Day!

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Apr 25

Bluebird Nest Success!

By John Schaust Birds, Bluebirds, Nesting 2 Comments »

Eastern Bluebird

“Now…if I can just get them to use the nest box down by the creek…”

You may remember this closing line from the blog I posted back on March 15th, Not the Least Bit Blue, in which I shared my joy at finally attracting bluebirds to the feeders in my yard.

Guess what…it really happened! They ARE nesting down by the creek!

The only part of my musing that didn’t come true is that they are using a natural tree cavity instead of the nest box I installed for them.

Needless to say, my family is ecstatic! And I have a cool video to share with you of some nest-side action.

The adults are busy feeding their young and we are having more fun than ever watching them raid the mealworm feeder in our backyard. We put mealworms out every morning and evening and within a few minutes they are gathering mouthfuls at the feeder to take back to the young in the nest.

By my calculations, the youngster should fledge sometime early next week!

Now…if I can just get them to bring all of the youngsters to our feeder in the backyard…

Who’s nesting in your backyard?

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Apr 05

To Beat the Band

By Brian Cunningham Birds, Courtship, Deter Bird Behavior, Downy Woodpecker, Nesting, Northern Flicker, Woodpeckers Leave a Comment »

Tis the season for drumming, pounding, beating, tapping and drilling. All words used to describe what active woodpeckers are doing this spring on the sides of houses, antennas, dead tree trunks and limbs. It’s enough noise to beat the band.

Woodpeckers and flickers make these sounds for three main reasons: communicating, foraging or making a home.

The loudest of the woodpecker sounds are when a male is pounding away on something that resonates really well. This is called drumming. It’s all about communication. The male woodpecker is trying to let potential rivals know that this particular area is his territory and he is also trying to attract a mate.

There is a Red-bellied Woodpecker using the top of a dead tree trunk in my yard to drum out his declaration of territory. He pounds a few times for a few seconds on the resonant trunk and then does a few calls. It’s very interesting to watch and listen.

If woodpeckers aren’t drumming, they are foraging. Two years ago a Downy Woodpecker was seemingly foraging on the wood trim of my house. You could hear him lightly tapping. He was leaving small-diameter, shallow holes all over the place. We went about trying to scare him off by hanging iridescent scare tape over the areas and he eventually gave up for less annoying pastures.

If woodpeckers aren’t drumming or foraging they are drilling. Woodpeckers and flickers are primary cavity nesters. They drill entrance holes into trees and excavate a nice one bedroom home. If a woodpecker is doing this on your house, try placing a nesting box directly over the hole. Use the species-appropriate box and fill it with wood shavings. Otherwise you’ll need to use scare tactics or barriers to encourage them to move elsewhere.

Are woodpeckers causing you to exclaim to beat the band this spring? If so, click here to check out our educational woodpecker page at wbu.com or visit your local Wild Birds Unlimited store for tips and products to alleviate the pounding. Find your nearest store here.

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Mar 23

Chickadee Nesting Question

By Brian Cunningham Birds, Chickadee, Nesting 2 Comments »

The nesting season is just getting going with the early nesters like bluebirds and chickadees.

I was recently asked a nesting question about chickadees that I thought would be fun to share and shed some light on a not-well-understood scenario with chickadee nesting.

“A Chickadee built a nest in a box in my yard. The nest was finished 8-9 days ago but no eggs yet. I have read that they can build multiple nests, choose the best site, and usually begin laying in about 2 days. Is this nest not likely to be used or should I leave it alone for a while longer?”

Chickadees shop around for nest sites. They check out lots of potential locations. They have been known to begin excavating and even start building a nest in three to five different locations in a season. Usually before the nests are complete they make a final decision on their favorite spot, complete the nest, wait a few days and then begin to lay eggs.

When chickadees excavate homes in rotten wood, the building process can take some time. Carolina Chickadees take about 20 days to lay the first egg after beginning to build a nest site. Black-capped Chickadees will take 7-14 days to lay an egg after beginning to build a nest site.

So, patience is in order before cleaning out a nest box that is thought to be abandoned by chickadees. If the nest looks finished, give it a week to see if eggs show up. If not, they may have chosen another location to raise their brood.

If you are having trouble getting Black-capped Chickadees interested in your nest box, try filling it with wood shavings for them to excavate. They seem to prefer that; whereas, Carolina Chickadees don’t seem to have a preference either way.

What birds are nesting in your yard? If you need a nest box, click here to find the right one.

Jul 29

Laggards or Strategists?

By Brian Cunningham American Goldfinches, Birds, Nesting 2 Comments »

Many songbirds raise their families in the spring and early summer with the juveniles seen hungrily flitting about in June and July. The American Goldfinch, however, is one of our latest nesting songbirds waiting till July or early-August before they even build a nest. But why?

The main reason…diet.

Young songbirds need a lot of protein as they grow. They are fed loads of insects to satisfy their protein needs. Goldfinches, however, are vegetarians. The young are fed loads of plant, grass and tree seeds. The best time to raise a brood is when these seed sources are readily abundant; hence, mid-to-late summer nesting.

The key time to start watching for nesting activity is when you see the soft, downy heads on thistle plants. They often use this for lining their nests.

American Goldfinches prefer to nest in habitats with trees and shrubs and usually place their nest four to ten feet high. The female chooses the nest site, builds the nest and incubates the eggs all on her own. She attaches the nest to supporting twigs with spider web. Sometimes she’ll weave the nest so tightly that it will temporarily hold water.

Goldfinches usually lay five pale-blue or greenish-blue eggs that will hatch in about 12 days. Nestlings will fledge (leave the nest) about 12 days after that.

The male feeds the female on the nest throughout incubation and takes on an ever increasing role in feeding the nestlings as they grow older.

Young American Goldfinches are dependent on their parents for at least three weeks after fledging. Be sure to watch and listen for their energetic wing fluttering as they harass their parents for food with a two-note begging call at your feeders.

American Goldfinches are common feeder visitors and prefer thistle (nyjer) and sunflower chips. They are also very attracted to water sources for drinking and bathing.

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Jun 10

Close Encounters of the Hummingbird Kind

By Brian Cunningham Birds, Hummingbirds, Nesting Leave a Comment »


You don’t often get to watch hummingbirds up close for any length of time because they are so small and always on the move. That is why it is so much fun to see hummingbirds perch at feeders to take a break or even have the rare treat of seeing one on the nest.

For the last three years a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird has been a regular visitor to my hummingbird feeder at home. At least, we like to think she is the same bird. You know when she is visiting the feeder when one of the kids calls out, “She’s back!”

Our feeder is in the middle of our living room picture window. She shows up in the early morning for a drink and disappears for a while. Her afternoon and evening visits are when she stops and rests a while on the feeder’s raised perches. It is so much fun to watch her up close for extended periods.

While birding in Texas this spring, I had another exciting close encounter. A female Black-chinned Hummingbird (very similar looking to Ruby-throated Hummingbirds) was sitting on a nest about 10 feet high on an open tree branch.

What an amazing site! She was just out of reach of my iPhone camera; but, I was able to use a spotting scope and digiscope some pictures with my iPhone. That is the picture shown above.

Hummingbird nests are not often seen; let alone with mom sitting on the blueberry-sized eggs. They are typically eye-level or higher in a tree. When they are close to eye-level, like the one I found, they are often overlooked because they are so small and well camouflaged. The golf ball-sized nests, often camouflaged with lichen, tree bark or flower petals, can be easily mistaken for a knot on the branch.

Have you had a close encounter of the bird kind? Feel free to share them in our comments section.

Jun 02

Of all the Luck…A Pileated Weekend!

By John Schaust Birds, Nesting, Pileated Woodpecker, Video, Woodpeckers Leave a Comment »

Sometimes you just get lucky!

For the past six years I have been fortunate enough to have a Pileated Woodpecker periodically roosting in a Sycamore tree not more than 40 yards from my house and easily visible from my living room window. Pretty lucky and definitely cool!

As Pileated Woodpeckers pair bond for life and hold a year round territory, my roosting Pileated and its mate visit my Tail Prop suet feeder almost daily…often at the same time. Very lucky and really cool!

But my luck reached its peak this spring as my Pileated pair decided to excavate their nest in a second sycamore located right next to the original roost tree. Needless to say, the yard work has suffered greatly as most of my outdoor “chore” time has been spent watching their captivating nesting activity.

Over the Memorial Day weekend it became obvious that the three nestlings were about to fledge. The young had obtained their juvenal plumage and sat teetering on the rim of the nest hole, vocalizing cheap imitations of their parents stronger calls.

Hoping to catch the main event, I set up a Vortex Razor spotting scope on the edge of my driveway to watch every detail and armed myself with the camera on my iPhone in hope of recording the nestling’s departure.

You could say this is where my luck failed me!

After three days of almost constant surveillance, the youngsters still called the sycamore home as the sun set on Memorial Day. And yes, as you have probably already guessed, they were gone by the time I returned home from work on Tuesday night!

I may have missed the big show…but what a privileged weekend I had being able to totally immerse myself into the world of this Pileated family. A true “How cool is that!” experience and one that I would like to try to share with you.

To give you a feel for what I was observing, I have posted a video clip of Momma Pileated feeding her young at the nesting cavity.

Pretty cool! And even though they have fledged, it’s not the end of the story.

Since the three juveniles will stay with their parents in their home territory for most of the summer, I am hoping to witness one more big show – the sight of five Pileated Woodpeckers making repeated visits to the suet and peanut feeders in my backyard!

Wish me luck!

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May 24

Sarah and Percy Owlets have left the nest box!

By Jim Carpenter Nesting, Owl Box Cam 2 Comments »

Baby owlets Sarah and Percy have officially left the house! This morning Sarah climbed out of the box and up into the branches above the box.  This afternoon Percy followed and left the house as well. They picked a bad time as a huge thunderstorm came in late this afternoon. The baby owls held on for dear life to their perch on the hickory branches. They survived the storm, but I bet they wish they were back in their cozy box.! They will stay in the trees  all summer strenthening their flight muscles and growing their mature feathers. We will be able to hear them communicate with their parents by hisses and soft screeches. They can fly 10 to 20 feet, but that’s it for now, so ma and pa will keep them fed for quite a while. I should be able to post a photo of the babies up the tree tomorrow, so check in later for that.  Thanks for watching our baby owls this year!

Apr 13

Mama Barred Owl is Back!

By Jim Carpenter Nesting, Owl Box Cam, Video 2 Comments »

Wild Birds Unlimited’s Owl Box Cam Resident
Learn more about owls

Everyone at Wild Birds Unlimited is excited to announce the launch of Owl Box Cam. For a second consecutive year, we have the pleasure of watching a mama Barred Owl raise her young and share in all the milestones. Currently mama is on two eggs, which should be hatching very soon!

An 11 year project, this is the second year we have successfully attracted a Barred Owl to this nesting box, located in northwest Indianapolis, Indiana. Owl Box Cam is live streaming during daylight hours (US Eastern Time).

Enjoy many of the milestones from last year’s brood (Sarah & Percy) by watching these recorded videos. With Owl Box Cam, we hope to bring people and nature together by sharing our joy and passion for the hobby of backyard bird feeding and the natural world all around us.

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May 14

Baby Owls are getting curious!

By Jim Carpenter Birds, Nesting, Owl Box Cam, Uncategorized Leave a Comment »

Last night we watched the owl box from our deck as both parents were calling to each other from different parts of the woods.  We could see the top of one of the owlets head as it tried to look outside at the big world and find its parents. It won’t be long until they leave the box and finish maturing outside of  the box just living in the trees. The parents will feed them all summer and we will be able to hear them calling their special hissing sound all summer.

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