Why do I feel under attack here....... (scorpions, estimate)

[DanaMarley]

Originally Posted by Grannysroost

In the past couple of nights we have had 4 of the Sonoran toads enter the dog part of the yard which were "relocated." If a dog mouths them or get squirted by the toxin in eyes, nose,or mouth, it can be deadly. Last night found a large tarantula. I wondered why we had the tarantula hawks and no tarantualas, I will not wonder again

Sonoran Desert Toad (Bufo alvarius)

Wow, never heard of such a thing.... sounds like you guys have very interesting wild life in your area...
we're now in the NE... all we see are foxes, and deer, and the occassional hawks....

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by Marcy1210

Helena~~hummer food is 4 parts water, 1 part plain, white sugar. The WBU people suggest not using the powdered hummer food or using red food dye as the red makes the egg shells thin, and they break too easily. As long as there's red on the feeder, the hummers will find it. Also, try to get a feeder where the "flowers" aren't yellow. Yellow attracts the bees which can overwhelm the feeders in fall and spring.

I agree, Marcy.

After reading an alert concerning that red stuff (I believe posted by you) I switched from a RED commercial Hummingbird Feeder Product to your 4 to 1 water / sugar recipe. Usually a big klutz in the kitchen but I can handle that one.

The little feisty buggers couldn't be happier and I'm saving a bunch because the feeder seems to need filling at least three or four times a week.

Thanks for the alert.

[Grannysroost]

Originally Posted by DanaMarley

Wow, never heard of such a thing.... sounds like you guys have very interesting wild life in your area...
we're now in the NE... all we see are foxes, and deer, and the occassional hawks....

A tarantula hawk is like an oversized wasp-like thing, I had to look it up when I first heard of it

[Helena and mike]

Originally Posted by DanaMarley

Wow, never heard of such a thing.... sounds like you guys have very interesting wild life in your area...
we're now in the NE... all we see are foxes, and deer, and the occassional hawks....

We just moved from NH and are use to those woodland creatures, we are in a totally different world now....but it is beautiful

[vjsoto]

Originally Posted by Helena and mike

I have yet to see a roadrunner. Is there any kind of food we can feed the lizards to get them in our yard? I think that would be the coolest thing.

Crickets.

[Helena and mike]

Originally Posted by vjsoto

Crickets.

Lol, Mike and I were saying that tonight, hundreds of them, but how do we keep them in our yard, lol. Okay now that we took over mikes post (its alright though cuz i gave him a kiss, lol). In NH humming birds only come seasonal (because we get what you can call cold weather and some stuff that is white, lol). Are humming birds here all year round?

[vjsoto]

Originally Posted by Marcy1210

I had a Cooper's hawk last fall that did attack the feeder birds. I also have a picture of him that I can't attach because (see above post) I don't know how, and City Data won't let me copy and paste my own pictures....but, I digress...

The hawks will come visit the feeders when the rodents have hibernated because the birds are easy pickings. After I see the hawk, I'll see eaten bird carcasses around the yards.

This is from the Wikipedia article on Cooper's Hawk.


Feeding


Eating a finch in a backyard with feeders


These birds capture prey from cover or while flying quickly through dense vegetation, relying almost totally on surprise. One study showed that this is a quite dangerous hunting style. More than 300 Cooper’s Hawk skeletons were investigated and 23% revealed healed fractures in the bones of the chest.[5] Most prey are mid-sized birds, with typical prey including American Robins, jays, woodpeckers, European Starlings,quail, icterids and doves. Birds preyed on can range in size from wood-warblers to Ring-necked Pheasants. They may also prey upon the raptor American Kestrel.[8] They have been known to rob nests and also eat small mammals like chipmunks, hares, mice, squirrels, and bats.[5] Other possibilities are lizards, frogs, snakes and large insects. It normally catches its prey with its feet and kills it by repeatedly squeezing it and holding it away from its body until it dies. They have also been seen drowning their prey, holding it underwater until it stops moving.[5] The hawks, in addition, often pluck the feathers off their prey on a post or other perch. They are increasingly seen hunting smaller songbirds in backyards with feeders. They will perch in trees overlooking the feeders, then swoop down and scatter the other birds in order to capture one in flight. These hawks can also pursue their prey on the ground by half running and half flying.[4]

Ah cool. I didn't know coopers hawks attacked other birds as a primary food source. I've seen a couple of hawks hanging around but they never seem to bother with the other birds. Maybe they wait until I'm not watching. Or maybe there are enough lizards and rodents around here to keep em busy. (shrug)

[vjsoto]

Originally Posted by Helena and mike

Lol, Mike and I were saying that tonight, hundreds of them, but how do we keep them in our yard, lol. Okay now that we took over mikes post (its alright though cuz i gave him a kiss, lol). In NH humming birds only come seasonal (because we get what you can call cold weather and some stuff that is white, lol). Are humming birds here all year round?

There are many lizards that are "regulars" in my yard but I'm thinking they have a pretty big feeding area and roam between yards. There is one rather large 12" spiny lizard that has taken up residence under some blocks in my yard. He's been caught lounging on my patio furniture at times in the mornings. I almost sat on him one day! He's very capable of running straight up and over a 5 foot concrete block wall so it's pointless to try and keep em contained.

Hummingbirds are definitely year-round residents. If you are a regular feeder they will start to nest in the trees and eves around your house. We always boil our sugar/water mixture to help prevent the fungus/algae (?) that inevitably starts to grow in the feeders. Just gotta make sure it cools down before you put it in the feeder. We also relocate the feeders several times a year to keep the ants from becoming a problem in one area. I'd estimate that we have ~50 hummers in my area. It's havoc around the feeders some days, especially at dawn and dusk.

But yes... back on topic. Sorry!

[Marcy1210]

Originally Posted by motormaker

Marcy1210,
Check this out, see post #3 on how to post pictures on CD from their FAQ forum.

//www.city-data.com/forum/faq/8...ing-posts.html

Thank you so much!! I really appreciate it. I printed out the information. I know I used to be able to put a picture in a post, but for some reason, either I forgot how, or the protocol changed. More than likely, it was me...

[Marcy1210]

Here's the hawk that was outside the bedroom window looking at ME!!! (I'm inside, fortunately). This was last October.