Let’s see …
December has been Cold & Snowy. The water from the well has been so frigid, that it froze the intake pipe & the well pump, once it got above the ground. And that was in the basement, which has been keeping a steady 42-50F. I suggest to anyone with a well … put heating tape on the intake pipe & then insulate as directed on the brand you used. In some ways, it is better than leaving your water dripping.
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8 of the 12 Crowhill Turkeys
Mid-December brought us a surprise. A plethora of Turkeys. What was once 5, is now 12. I dont know which one is Gray. There are a couple small females with Gray heads. But, we have 2 competitive alpha males that wont stop battling it out. Finn went to feed them one morning … while these guys were wrestling about. As everyone ran up the mountain to distance themselves from Finn, these 2 continued to do the neck dominance … AS they Ran with the rest. Go figure.
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Abe Crowfoot is still about. Though, with all the turkeys, he keeps his distance. He hangs out across the street at our neighbors. With the bad leg, he appears to much prefer the expanse of cleared driveway for landing on. Our neighbor puts out bread for him. He is equally attentive to those that go to his house, as we are to those who stop by ours.
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Over the Christmas holiday, our other neighbors (the hunters) decided that plinking in the back yard with their black-powder & .45’s, was in keeping with the spirit of the Season. Even the 50mph winds we were having didnt deter them from their games. The broad-side of a barn would have been hard-pressed to receive a bullet with that wind. What it did accomplish, though, was to terrify Abe, the Turkeys & most of the other birds that visit us. It has quieted down some … but the damage is done. We have fewer visitors then we did before. I am sure they will be back. I wouldnt blame them if they were not.
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One slight New Year Cross-over that I will mention here is this.
What do Turkeys & Penguins have in common?
Their LOVE of Sliding in the snow.
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We had a foot of snow get dumped on us o9ver the New Year’s weekend. We keep the paths around the house pretty clear for walking around, and the turkeys use these paths too. However … they nest up the mountain. In order for them to get to the feeders they either have to cross over to the side-road which goes up the mountain … or, they have to cross the river which comes down the mountain to our back-yard. The Turkeys decided that Flying over the River & belly-flopping into the snow, in order to slide accross the yard to the feeders was the way to go. & they looked like they were having FUN.
Bless those Turkeys.
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Happy New Year Everyone !!!
Keep those feeders filled for your little feathery & furry friends.
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Food Consumption: Sunflower Seeds is the big winner this month, with the cold weather & the turkeys. This should be pretty consistent going forward. Next is Mixed-Seed, due to a large band of Blue-jays. Suet is at a steady pace, with only woodpeckers & the smaller birds (chickadees, titmice, etc.).
In Order of Quantity (unless noted otherwise) …
Dec.:
Birds: Turkeys (well, 12 that are here all the time), Black-Capped Chickadees, Hairy & Downy Woodpeckers, Mourning Doves, Nuthatches, Tufted Titmice, American Goldfinches, Ravens, Dark-Eyed Juncos, Northern Cardinals, Crows, Pileated Woodpeckers
Animals: Gray Squirrels, Red Squirrels, Cats