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Just hit 112 different species in my backyard since March and I'm warning you all
I started keeping a list on a notepad back in March, nothing serious. Tuesday morning I spotted a scarlet tanager and when I added it up I was at 112. That number scared me because it means my feeders and native plants are working too good - I'm getting birds that should be passing through staying for days. My neighbor two doors down told me his cat killed a pine warbler last week that was hanging around. Has anyone else noticed more birds sticking around than usual and is that a red flag for their safety?
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the_joseph1mo ago
How is having too many birds a bad thing? Isn't the whole point of planting native stuff and putting out feeders to attract as many birds as possible? My yard is a nonstop bird feeding station and I've had juncos, towhees, and sparrows hanging around all winter instead of migrating. They seem fine. The cat problem is a separate issue from the birds sticking around. You can have a great yard without having every local cat become a problem.
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janarivera1mo ago
My neighbor's cat brought me a half-dead goldfinch last spring and acted like it was a gift. I trapped that cat in my garage for three hours before he finally let it go and it flew off fine but now I have a whole new level of paranoia about my setup. My yard's become a bird hotel with no checkout time.
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