Get Well Soon Wishing Well Bird Feeder

For the bird lover who is not feeling well, BirdLodges.com offers the Wishing Well Bird Feeder.  Hang it outside the window to entertain the loved one who is recovering and in need of nature's entertainment.

Materials:

Wishing well seed covered feeder is adorned with moss, corn, millet, and red sorghum and is a real treat for the wild birds in your area.

Wishing well bird feeder is conveniently designed to hold sunflower seeds and a complimentary bag of seeds is included with purchase.

Made of sturdy yellow pine and blandex lumber and hand crafted in USA

Extreme weather may affect the appearance of the seed covered bird feeder, but the birds shouldn't mind!

Ideas: When the seeds are gone or just need replenishing try covering it with honey or peanut butter and sprinkled seeds for a fresh edible bird feeder.

Seed covered feeders are wonderful gifts for any occasion, any time of year. You’ve come to the right place to find the perfect gift for the wildlife and nature lover in your life: friends, family, and you! 

Church Birdhouses - new to BirdLodges.com - are sure to decorate any garden or backyard; front yard too! Wherever the birds might like it is the key.

Made from cypress or mahogany wood reclaimed from leftover furniture manufacturing and trimmed in gorgeous copper.  We humbly claim these are the most beautiful birdhouses available and would be wonderful as a gift for those who decorate the garden and welcome wild birds.

Classic Chapel:

Flock of Ages:

High Praise in Mahogany:

Old Tyme Chapel:

Edible Bird Seed Ornaments for Indoor and Outdoor

We have just introduced a collection of edible bird seed ornaments for use on an indoor Christmas tree or anywhere outdoors.

A selection of five ornaments include a snowman, bell, tree, gingerbread man, and star.
We also offer a set which include six of the snowflake ornaments.
Each ornament is approximately nine inches in size.

You will find these and much more on our Edible Birdhouses page.  Click here for more information

http://www.birdlodges.com/holiday-seed-ornaments.html

Butterfly Houses in Happy Springtime Colors

It's that time of year again - time to share new products with cyberspace!

This week we a new selection of Butterfly Houses in a variety of springtime colors, plus red and green!

Here's the link to the page: http://www.birdlodges.com/butterfly-vivarium.html

and here are a few sample pictures:

Place butterfly houses in a sunny location and the butterflies will be happy to find a warm and private home.  I've heard it's a good idea to put a few sticks or twigs inside on an angle so the b-flies have something to cling to.
Enjoy!

Lady Bug House - they make a lady bug house?

Who knew there was such a thing as a Lady Bug House? And, they are available in green, gray, red, white, and yellow.  A sunny place is preferred to keep the lady bugs nice and warm. They like to shelter in colonies and get out of the wind and rain and be protected from predators just like us!  Who knew?

Woodpecker Poking at Your House?

How do I keep a woodpecker from pecking at my house siding? From The Today Show on NBC: String fishing lines randomly where the woodpeckers are attracted and since they do not want to be tangled they will avoid the area.

New York handcrafted rustic wooden birdhouses - pictures!

Like New York?
From New York?
Check out our new collection of birdhouses from a family-owned workshop in New York:
http://www.birdlodges.com/garden-birdhouses.html

Roosting Box for cold weather shelter

Found several down feathers in the backyard roosting box today!!

To view our collection, click here please.

New York Rustic Birdhouses

It's time for a bit of shameless self-promotion!

We recently added very cool New York inspired rustic birdhouses to our Garden Birdhouses collection.  If you are from New York they just might make you homesick!

Check 'em out..... www.birdlodges.com/garden-birdhouses.html

Look for the houses titled "The...."

Thanks!
BirdLodges.com

"Bag It" documentary...think about all the plastic we use.

Recently viewed a documentary titled "Bag It" which goes into great detail regarding the one-use plastic people use and where it ends up.  We highly recommend anyone and everyone watch this film, and I read somewhere that it's free on Netflix.

One particularly touching story is about the plastic which ends up in the ocean and affects all the fish and animals, including the albatross.  The plastic breaks down into minuscule pieces and appears to be fish food for birds and fish.  The movie described it as "plastic soup."

To clean up the plastic in the ocean is daunting if not even possible, but we can think twice before we use plastic, especially for one time usage. And, personally, I would like to see people stop releasing balloons in the air as a tribute to...anything.  It's the same as throwing litter on the ground or in the ocean.  This was not covered in the movie but it's my two cents worth!

Can you think of how you can minimize your use of plastic?

Hummingbirds: View video of how hummingbirds drink.

For a close-up view of how hummingbirds drink:

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/05/hummingbird-tongue-drinking/

Cleaning Owl Houses and guarding against Hantavirus

Thanks to Joan Morris of the San Jose Mercury News for this suggestion:

September is a good time of year to clear out old nesting material from owl houses. If you choose to clean out your owl house be sure to guard against Hantavirus (carried by rodents) by using gloves and a dust mask.  It's best to not use a broom as it will stir up the dust and rodent droppings.

Bat houses, mating, and gestation period

Did you know bats will mate prior to winter hibernation and when the females arise in the spring, the gestation period of 50-60 days begins?

The most active time for mating in North America is August, and they are quite the promiscuous mammal!

If you'd like to assist bats by providing a bat house we have a large selection of shapes and sizes.  One of the most important requirements for a successful bat house is the location; it must be exposed to seven or so hours of sunlight to heat the interior of the house.

Our bat houses include literature explaining the bat's natural ability to help control the insect population.

To check out our bat houses visit or click on 

www.birdlodges.com/bat-houses.html

Parakeet Antics at the Pet Store

I recently observed ten or so yellow parakeets playing in a cage at a pet store.  They were having the best time playing "keep away" with one yellow feather approximately two inches long.

At one point one of the parakeets was stuck on his back and could not roll over.  Right away most of the other parakeets circled around the one in distress and stood completely still and stared at it.  The bird on the ground was kicking his feet and rolling back and forth trying to right himself.  A couple of the parakeets started to pull on his feathers, something I once witnessed a healthy parakeet do to a sick parakeet - a sign of affection or a sign of "it's over for you now get out of here!"?

Soon enough the parakeet on the ground was up and playing with the others as if nothing had happened. Or not, who knows what lurks in the mind of a revengeful parakeet?

PBS Nature show about crows...

This show will give you a new respect for your noisy neighborhood crows!:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/a-murder-of-crows/full-episode/5977/

American Kestrel House - only two birds remain!

Only two kestrels remain in the nest...

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/page.aspx?pid=2451

Bird Feeding Myths - Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder

Very amusing! Bird feeding myths:

1. This Feeder Is 100% Squirrel Proof! I am sorry, but there's just no way! Here I am setting myself up for angry letters from feeder manufacturers, but it is simply impossible to believe this statement. Oh, yes, you can make a feeder squirrel proof by placing it in the middle of a treeless lawn with a pole-baffle that would do the Pentagon proud. But nail that same feeder to your deck railing and watch the squirrels remove the confident smile from your face, along with all the seed in your feeder. Squirrels have the luxury of being way more resourceful than any bird feeder designer. Why? Because a squirrel is working to feed itself and its offspring, and it will throw itself into the task with all its might every single day. The squirrel thinks of nothing else but the seed inside that feeder, and how to get at it. The feeder designer, meanwhile, is thinking about lunch and vacation and next Tuesday's staff meeting and bowling league. That's why the squirrels win every time.

http://www.cedar-works.com/newsite/feeding_myths.html

Where to view Bald Eagles

Is viewing a wild bald eagle on your bucket list?  If so, head out west to Grand Teton National Park in Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a float trip down the Snake River.

Triangle X Ranch Float Trips travel ten miles down the Snake River and at this time of year bald eagles and their nest are visible in dead trees along the shoreline; a wonderful sight!

http://www.trianglex.com/grand-teton-park-river-trips

American Kestrel Nest Camera

Be careful, it's easy to lose track of time watching this kestrel family:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/page.aspx?pid=2451

Eagles Nest Cam

Eagle cam: These eagles are about to leave the nest!

http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles

American Kestrel cam in Boise, Idaho

At the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho we present

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/page.aspx?pid=2451

a Kestrel nest with five recently hatched nestlings.

Enjoy!

Great Blue Heron Nest Cam

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/page.aspx?pid=2433

Thanks to our friends at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology we have a live cam of a Great Blue Heron nest with the occasional visit from mom or dad.  What a commotion that causes!  You have to see and hear it to believe it!

Hummingbird nectar goes bad in warm weather

Hummingbird nectar exposed to hot sun doesn't stay fresh very long, and smells bad, too! Either hang the hummingbird feeder in the shade or be prepared to change the nectar every day or two.  The hummingbirds will appreciate it!

A Castle fit for a Queen

A castle bird feeder! Does your mother like to feed birds? Or maybe she does, but doesn't know it yet? Mothers always like to be treated as queens, right? Here's the perfect suggestion for a Mother's Day gift!

For more information, please click on Castle Edible Birdhouse.

Save 10% at BirdLodges.com

Celebrate March with us!

BirdLodges.com Anniversary

Basketball "March Madness"

St. Patrick's Day

First day of spring

Save 10% on all products by using promo code bluebirds at checkout.

Code is valid through Tuesday, March 20, 2012.

www.BirdLodges.com

Attention birdhouse builders!

Quoted from "Cadillac Desert" by Marc Reisner...the subject is the expansion of development in the west: "One of the unforeseen results of the homestead legislature was a high rate of employment among builders of birdhouses. In most instances, you were required to display an "erected domicile" on your land."

New edible birdhouse: Tractor!

Here's the latest edible birdhouse in the BirdLodges.com collection: a tractor!

Here's a very cool way to use birdhouses as decoration. Our customer made dining room table and sideboard centerpieces out of the Hansel and Gretel edible birdhouses before shipping them as holiday gifts.