This is from February 25, and it shows nicely how vocal the Juncos are. They have already become less in the last few days, a sure sign that migration is underway. This is one of the more boring times of the year, and I have decided to pause feeding for a bit for several reasons. For once, I have seen some Finches that might have the dreaded Finch Eye disease, for two, it is a good opportunity to clean the palate, so to speak, and maybe make the larger groups of MoDos and also the Starlings to disperse. I am cleaning all feeders thoroughly with a 1:10 bleach solution and have changed camera setups to still capture whatever exciting might happen without feeders. This is tough on me but it is a good time for this in the season, and it might also help the BBs with their nesting efforts. I have lots of material so I can still continue to post.

If you see puffed up birds that seem to “nap” on the feeder and look cute and tame, they might actually be sick. This does not mean you have made them sick but you can take measures to keep your birds healthy. Finches are prone to certain illnesses because of their genetic makeup, so they are a good bird to keep an eye on for possible issues. I will keep feeders down for 10 to 14 days to let the birds disperse and let nature take its course.