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Julie Bove[_2_]

"Jean B." > wrote in message
...
> wrote:
>> On Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:08:00 -0500, "Jean B." > wrote:
>>
>>> wrote:
>>>> On Mon, 26 Jan 2015 20:37:58 -0500, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> The big snow starts after midnight. Expecting 24", maybe more.
>>>>
>>>> I guess it has left the USA now because it is here. I am just keeping
>>>> my fingers crossed that the power does not go down The wind is
>>>> due to gust at 100km around lunchtime.
>>>>
>>> It is still snowing here. When I awoke, late (I obviously was going
>>> nowhere) and looked out the window, the snow looked quite innocent, with
>>> tiny flakes flakes drifting... I was going to say down, but they were
>>> dancing all over the place. For a moment, I thought this must be a good
>>> sign, that there couldn't be that much snow on the ground. But when I
>>> got to the point where I could gaze out at the bird feeders and toward
>>> the road, I was greeted by the appalling sight of A LOT of the dreadful
>>> white stuff. I had decided NOT to start dealing with this at a time
>>> that would guarantee that I would get soaking wet, so I haven't explored
>>> yet. Instead I am pondering the most-logical approach. At least it
>>> looks like the thoughtful plowing contractor has been on the job,
>>> because we don't have a lot of compacted snow at the end of the
>>> driveway.
>>>
>>> I will add that my main preparations were to get two more bird feeders
>>> and a lot of bird food and suet, so my birds would be happy even if I
>>> couldn't get to the feeders for a couple of days. Some idiot at one of
>>> the places where I bought bird food told me I should take in my feeders
>>> because the birds wouldn't be out. I am glad I was skeptical, because
>>> the birds are very much in evidence.
>>
>> I have feeders on my balcony and there has been a lineup nearly all
>> day with squatters on the rail and feeders occupied! Ground feeding
>> birds find snow very difficult and need the extra. I put out lots of
>> suet to try and keep them warm.
>>
> Same here. They really NEED to have their food. I can't imagine why this
> guy said what he did. I sure hope he didn't convince anyone to put away
> their feeders.
>
> I do have a question, which someone might be able to answer. One is often
> told (or reads) that birds need water in the winter. BUT how on earth did
> the birds survive before man started putting out water for them?
> Obviously the birds DID survive without man putting it out. What am I
> missing here?
>
> (And I do view food differently because I have been feeding the birds and
> figure they make their nest near sources of food and thus become reliant
> on those sources.)

Before we built roads and houses like we have now, there were likely not
only more natural sources of food but sources of water too! Things like a
fallen log could hold water in the cracks of the bark. And naturally shady
areas tend to hold moisture.

I see now not only why we got that rat under our house but why my neighbor
has a mud slide in front of his house. He did clean up the mud on Sunday
only to have it come right back. Not only did he remove every bit of
vegetation from his back yard but he totally leveled the land as well. The
entire back yard is mud now. And it is on higher ground than the front yard
that slopes towards the street. I also think there still is a broken pipe
there that needs to be fixed because I had that problem as did the person on
the other side of me. And we had over 24 hours of dry weather, yet the mud
slide came back.