[hdzup3]

has anyone else seen tons of cardinals this year? i am in northwest CT, winchester and i dont remember seeing so many.

[skytrekker]

Lots of Cardinals, also Orioles, various woodpeckers, yellow finches.

[bigjeff532003]

Originally Posted by hdzup3

has anyone else seen tons of cardinals this year? i am in northwest CT, winchester and i dont remember seeing so many.

I live in the same town and yes I have seen a lot this year. They are also very red this year. Much brighter than I ever remember seeing them. They are quite stunning this year.

[Cruikshl]

Send some my way. I have tons of wrens but not many cardinals and the food and water is there.

[andthentherewere3]

No more than usual here. Anytime now though, I'm expecting to see a family of Cardinals at the feeder, they come every summer. (not the very same family, of course) They are fun to watch, the parents will actually get the food from the feeder and pop the seeds directly in the youngster's mouths. By that time the babies have just learned to fly, and their feathers are still a bit fluffy. I guess that is how the parents teach them that there is food at the feeder. Maybe each year the offspring come back?

I have to laugh at myself, the first time I read this thread I had just read the Catholic discussion posts on another thread. At first I thought the thread was about Catholic Cardinals, and was scratching my head. Blonde moment.

[hdzup3]

is it a weather thing do you think? i was hopeing it was a good luck sign. lol
i could use a little of that.

[jjbradleynyc]

I've seen a lot in our yard in Stamford. Also a ton of BlueJays and Robins. But I do not remember seeing as many for the 3 summers I've lived in CT. Beautiful to see them though. We are building a koi pond and small river/waterfall in our backyard, so we hope to attract a ton more next summer.

[mollyH]

Same here. Tons of cardinals, bluejays and robins! Is this a signal of a "problem?"
Like the "vanishing bees?"

[glxyman21]

Originally Posted by jjbradleynyc

I've seen a lot in our yard in Stamford. Also a ton of BlueJays and Robins. But I do not remember seeing as many for the 3 summers I've lived in CT. Beautiful to see them though. We are building a koi pond and small river/waterfall in our backyard, so we hope to attract a ton more next summer.

We have a Koi pond in our back yard, but this past year a grey heron came and ate all the fish! We had the fish there for many years, and I guess the heron finally spotted them over his flight path and landed. He ate the last four this past week! It is something to keep in mind before spending lots of money on fish. As for the cardinals, we always have the same pair every year (not sure if its the same ones, but usually just one male and female) Lots of morning doves, blue jays, sparrows, wood pecker famlies, and gold finches. Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the more exotic ones.

[andthentherewere3]

What a shame about the fish. I have a koi pond too, but it's close to the house, and so far we haven't had any herons. Although, a week or so ago I came around the house and scared a hawk away who had been sitting on the edge of the pond. And it was raining, so it wasn't like he was just popping in for a drink. I know a lot of "ponders", (as they are called in the ponding world), keep netting over their ponds to keep out herons etc. I am not a fan of that look, though. One thing you can do is put a heavy flower pot in the pond on the bottom, and turn it on it's side, so that the fish can hide inside it if a predator comes. In the summer I have a lot of plants that the fish can hide under, too.

Interestingly, while I said earlier that we didn't have more cardinals this year, we do have more robins. Yet we have fewer blue jays. I wonder if they are shifting territories?