As with many folks, I have a great fondness for birds. In California it was easy to have a constant relationship with them because in such a dry climate a full bird bath guarantees a regular flow of visitors. The only difficulty in our relationship stemmed from my equal fondness for living as much outside as possible while living inside a 24x24 foot house with 17 windows. Crime scene tape hanging from all the rafters met one mutual need: not having the birds fly headlong into the house while attempting to fly through the house. They seemed pleased with our arrangement, and I am very clear that they gave me enormous amounts of pleasure.
My relationship with birds took on quite another tone upon arrival in Washington. First, at least thus far, no creature in the wild is going to be tempted by an offering of water. Water we all have aplenty. Plus, the birds that had made this house their home were well on the way to doing it severe damage. It quickly became apparent that discouraging house-sharing while encouraging moving along to a place of one’s own was an essential direction. Nests in the eaves were removed and screens installed. Layers and mounds of droppings were blasted away, exposing bare wood where the droppings had eaten away the paint. (That to be handled in drier weather.)
One of the projects we have been looking forward to as we get to know this area is assisting native birds with habitat and good things to eat while also attending to the needs of migrating folks. Happily, we have in our very own town a Wild Birds Unlimited store. Off I went to begin to be educated. Here is our first result.
While there I learned that, “There are four species of hummingbirds found in the Pacific Northwest: Anna's, Black-chinned, Calliope, and Rufous. Of these four species, only Anna's Hummingbird can be found year-round in the Puget Sound region of western Washington. The increasing popularity of hummingbird feeders and of urban plantings that provide flowers in blossom year-round are the major reason for the expansion of the Anna’s Hummingbird into western Washington.” I was also reassured that it is fine to feed sugar water to hummingbirds so I’m buying sugar for the first time in longer than I can remember. Apparently, we have another example here of beliefs, assumptions, and opinions not being a “one-size fits all” sort of arrangement. I don’t need to save the hummers from what isn’t good for me!