The Downies are daily visitors since we moved here and the others came by here and there. The Pileated and his mate showed up once in a while for about 2 years, but the last couple of weeks I feel like I am in a woodpecker aviary. Hope they move soon, my birdfood bill is getting ridiculous.

Claysmom, perhaps your son would be interested in making his property a Certified Wildlife Habitat? This is easier than most people might think. You just need to provide food, shelter and water for various types of animals. You can Google it and read all about the requirements online, and even print out an application for the official certification. Nicki's city yard is certified, so even those without rural property can qualify. I encourage everyone who is interested to check it out. (If I can managed to stay on the computer long enough, I'll see if I can find the link, but I'm having some unanticipated difficulties from my foot surgery, and won't be here very long.) Glad you guys enjoyed seeing this old post pop up again. I do love these birds, and am happy it was of interest to you. Marcia

dklucius, you are absolutely correct that the price of black oilseed is on the rise, but i doubt that the local riding horse market is generating a major impact because they have been using sunflower seeds of all variety, and especially the black oilseed as a supliment in both Equine and Bovine feeds for a number of years. I think you will find a much greater impact is coming from the oil industry. Although black oil seed has not been extensively farmed in the past, there are now finding that black oilseed it much cheaper than corn to produce and it has a higher yield for making biofuel. As the biofuel industry expands we can expect to see a big demand on sunflower seeds of all varieties. It is a great deal for the farmers because their initial planting and tilling costs are less and they can plant & harvest the oilseed with the same equipment they currently use for corn. If the biofuel industry kicks off as expected we will see the price of sunflower seeds fluctuate very quickly, It could go through the roof or on the other hand, once more farmers get into the production the price could drop tremmendiously. However it turns out, I will be okay because I have unlimited access to 10 acres where I can grow my own oilseed, or convert some of it to open meadow bird preserve. Last year we had to cut down two 65ft high Maple trees in the yard. We sold off the firewood, but I took all the brush and limbs and built a living fence along the creek which provides excellent habitat for birds, rabbits, and a couple ground hogs, now to mention that the open meadow area provides a hunting ground for the hawks and Bald Eagles. As soon as the weather breaks I will be building some hunting blinds in that area where i can sit all day and shoot pictures.

Thanks all. I do feel lucky to see them, especially in a suburban area. Fortunately we have a lot of woods and habitat around for them. They do seem to come and go. I will see them daily for a while, and then go for a stretch where I don't see them for a few months. When they're here, it's hard to keep up with their appetite! I bought a case of suet plugs last week.