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| Cardinals make sure I know they are hungry. |
The bird books say - the male Cardinal is shy and lets the female test the feeder first. When I go out the kitchen door, the birds begin singing - or rather calling - in their loudest voices. Leaving food on the barrels, step stool, and window sills (the last for baby squirrels), I go inside and look out the window. But not before activating the chimes.
At the window I look for the first visitors. Often it is the male Cardinal, and there he was today, picking up his peanut or corn and flying back to safety.
The baby squirrels are the most fun. They are being taught to leave mom alone and go out on their own. "Eat at Jacksons - they always have food," the mother squirrels says. So I see big-eyed baby squirrels enjoying breakfast on the window sills. They are just like human babies in having eyes full of wonder, looking inside, wondering how so much good food can appear on the sill.
There is no fear. They look at my face inches away and go on with their feeding. A peanut looks pretty good in the squirrel's paws.
I move the toddler pools around and keep them filled with a few inches of water. Birds hop in and out. If I can position a pool to be shallow and deep, groups of starlings will go in together and have a riot splashing.
Birds fear deep water, so I keep one part of the pool dry, if possible. Now that I have seen our possum at night, I wonder how often she gets a drink of water too.
Given enough time, birds and squirrels can train almost any adult human to be on time, generous with food, and willing to add extra treats. God gave them that talent.
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| Those are bird feeders, Walnut, not squirrel feeders. And you are resting on their perch. |
