The outdoor beat at PennLive.com – everything from nature to bird feeding to hunting and fishing – brings a steady flow of questions and comments from readers, which are always welcome at mschneck@pennlive.com. Here are some that came in this week:
“I have been a backyard feeder for many years,” writes a Mechanicsburg reader. “I have specific feeders for (woodpeckers and finches) and have noticed a significant decline in sightings for both. For the woodpeckers, I have 2 screen feeders filled with peanuts and they are usually spent after about 10 days. For the finches, I also have 2 feeders. One has been frequented by smaller woodpeckers and over time, they have enlarged the feeder ports. This feeder has to be 10 years old but is the most popular of the 2. The feed is high-value canary/niger mix and yet it too has been virtually untouched. I went on vacation (2 weeks ago) and freshened both feeders before leaving. Both feeders are barely touched. Any thoughts?”
Response: On the macro-scale, remember the recent study of wild bird populations led by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The researchers determined that those populations had dropped by nearly 30 percent since 1970. They calculated that 2.9 billion breeding birds have bee lost across all biomes of the U.S. and Canada.
Also, across most of Pennsylvania, this fall has been an easy one for birds looking for food. The summer was a good growing season for wild plants producing seeds, fruits and nuts. Much of that produce is still available on the landscape. Birds have not been pressed to tap all available food sources, including bird feeders.
On a more local level, consider what may have changed in or near your backyard. Has there been tree removal, land clearing, new houses or something similar? Have others in your neighborhood added new feeders in their backyards? Has the predator population, both wild like hawks and foxes and domestic like free-roaming cats, increased? Have you noticed or heard local reports of wild bird diseases like house finch eye disease in your area? Many factors might go unnoticed but still impact your local bird population.
Another reader asked, “Many years ago while hunting small game I saw a coal-black squirrel. It so amazed me that I could not shoot it. I did not see one since. How prevalent are they in the woods of Pennsylvania right now?”
Response: It may be partially a result of social media and the easy sharing of information available to us just now, but there do seem to be a lot of recent reports of black squirrels, which are melanistic phases of gray and fox squirrels. Most of the reports are from northern Pennsylvania. A few spots I know to have black squirrels are Little Pine State Park in Lycoming County, Allegheny National Forest in northwestern Pennsylvania and Milton State Park on the Susquehanna River in Northumberland County.
If you’re going to battle squirrels at your bird feeders, you should know these bushy-tail facts
“I just finished reading your article on battling squirrels (at backyard bird feeders) and wanted to let you in on my secret defense against those bloodthirsty little demons: a metal Slinky,” wrote another reader. “Secure it at the top (zip ties work great on my double hook), wind it around the pole and either just let the bottom few inches with the clip hang free or cut the clip off and finish winding it around.
“I haven’t had a squirrel get into the bird feeder since I tried this. They can’t seem to figure out how to overcome the metal edge of the Slinky sliding up and down the pole. I don’t remember where I first heard about this, but I’ll never be without one again.”
In response to my article on the monster walleye that took over the state-record spot for its species, a reader wrote, “Throw it back.”
River monster caught in Pa. claims state-record status: Photo
Response: Catch and release fishing is a widespread and spreading practice among anglers. It’s also a common source of argument and attempted shaming on social media.
Some anglers continue to keep fish for the table or other uses, such as baits for fishing or trapping. That is entirely legal within the state’s fishing regulations, such as size and creel limits.
If you have a question, observation or comment about anything in the outdoors, contact Schneck at mschneck@pennlive.com.
