From Fall of 2003… When will my finches come back? If you read my cover article, you know that the early fall is the slowest time for birds at your feeders. This is especially true for goldfinches. The finch "season" is considered to be December through June. Don't fret, while the drought has probably hurt them a little, keep putting out the sunflower chips and or nyjer and they will return. How can I keep birds from striking my windows? This is a good question that has many different points of view. Some feel that there is a perfect distance to place feeders from window. Others feel that you should not clean your windows. Not bad! I know that short of placing screening or netting in front of your windows, you will have occasional window strikes. We do know that feeders hung closer than 10 feet from windows often keep the birds from gaining enough speed to hurt them when they hit. If you do discover a bird that has been stunned, place it in a safe warm place (outside of course) until it can regain its "whits". What are the best binoculars for my kids? It definitely depends on your child's age, there are two that I really like. If your child is say under 5, I like the Bushnell 4X30 Powerlites. They have the look and feel of "big people" binoculars but only cost around $16. If your child is a little older and really interested in birds, I would suggest the Nikon 7X21 Naturalist. They have a great wide field of view and are remarkable clear for their price ($69.95). I have been seeing lots of bluebirds lately. Don't they leave? From what we know, our bluebirds do leave for the winter. The birds that we are seeing now are birds from more northern climes. We often see bluebirds this time of year in small flocks. They will occasionally feed at feeder station. Last winter I had a customer that had a small flock eating regularly on an Insect Treat Suet cake covered with peanut butter. Others have had luck with straight sunflower chips. Your best bet is a source of unfrozen water.

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