Christine @inthecloud5 ordered grub worms by mail and attracted colorful starlings and captured them in an amazing pose. So I also ordered grub worms but mine were dried instead of live. But the grackle came and ate -- and look very closely you will see a Jane @jgpittenger type of bird tongue capture! Well, mine is not as clear and sharp as hers but this is the first bird tongue I've captured! The bird house I ordered because it reminds me of Tove Jansson's Moomin House. When it arrived, the box said "Made in Sweden". While Tove lived in Finland, she was in the Swedish-speaking part of Finland, so her native language and therefore the language she wrote in was Swedish. In Japan, there is a Moominland with a human-sized Moomin House you can enter!
I buy dried mealworms from Wild Birds Unlimited. The life ones creep me out. My starlings go crazy of therm and the Bark Butter Bits. I had 4 fledglings in the vicinity of the feeders yelling their heads off to be fed and the parents trying to encourage them to eat and also grabbing food for them. The noise was unreal.
Beautiful bird house, great colors. And congratulations for the tongue! I’d like to take a @jpittinger kind of photo of the stars , perhaps even of the Milky Way. The sky up here is so clear! Fav
@inthecloud5 -- the results of having ordered the grub worms -- but my question is if it rains and the dried worms get all wet will the sun just dry them back out and are they ok to eat again? Or do I need to replace them? Maybe @joansmor knows?
@jgpittenger -- trying for that bird tongue that you so expertly capture on something as tiny and fast moving as a hummingbird
If these are life worms I am not sure but my dried ones don't hang around long enough this time of year to get wet. But in the later part of the year they seem fine after a rain. The good thing is I keep the dried ones in a container in my house with no worries of them getting wet or escaping. I have dropped the dry ones on the floor and just swept them up but the live ones I would be afraid would get loose and start a family somewhere I didn't want them. Ummm should I take a picture of these for this week's 52-week challenge which my camera club is doing? The subject is Phobias. Been wondering how to do this as I have plenty of phobias (like my fear of lightning which has kept me from capturing a picture of it). Thanks, Junko you have saved me.
The bottom line for me is do the dried worms and no worries. Now I see they have a new product called insects and bits. They cover insects (dead) in the bark butter and seeds. I might try a bag of those. My birds are spoiled because I am in stay at home. Do you have any fledglings? I had 4 fledgling starlings yesterday and the noise was unbelievable. I room full of 4-year-olds could not make as much noise. Another little note - people used to say don't feed the birds as they get used to it and you could cause them feeding problems if you stop especially in winter. But the experts say they survived before you fed them and they will after so enjoy this stay at home hobby. Wish you lived near by I ordered 2 twenty pound bags of no mess seeds when I meant to order 2 Three and a Half pounds.
@jyokota great shot, Junko! Love the bird house too. We haven't had rain here in the UK for weeks (unusually) so haven't had a problem with the dried mealworms getting wet. But last year there were some left in the feeder when it rained and we ended up with a soggy and very smelly mess. It's not usually a problem when the starlings are feeding because they polish them all off in one visit. We've had a lot here enjoying the mealworms this morning, may be more pictures later :)
@jgpittenger -- trying for that bird tongue that you so expertly capture on something as tiny and fast moving as a hummingbird
The bottom line for me is do the dried worms and no worries. Now I see they have a new product called insects and bits. They cover insects (dead) in the bark butter and seeds. I might try a bag of those. My birds are spoiled because I am in stay at home. Do you have any fledglings? I had 4 fledgling starlings yesterday and the noise was unbelievable. I room full of 4-year-olds could not make as much noise. Another little note - people used to say don't feed the birds as they get used to it and you could cause them feeding problems if you stop especially in winter. But the experts say they survived before you fed them and they will after so enjoy this stay at home hobby. Wish you lived near by I ordered 2 twenty pound bags of no mess seeds when I meant to order 2 Three and a Half pounds.