We raised Carolina wrens in a pig flower pot which sat on the deck railing. They chose this pig with the tough thorned aloe vera plant for 3 years running. To sort of hide the nest from our movements, I located the tall pot of bougainvillea in front of it. The day the fledgelings flew, I always called it WHEN PIGS FLY. They are still hanging around our garden, fussing at us for trespassing, and I still call them the Pig Family. Now we have the second pair of bluebirds in a nestbox in the hosta garden. They have babies in there and when I am close enough I hear them begging for food. I sure hope they fledge before the weather gets too too hot. Last year the pair abandoned the 2nd round of babies because it got too hot. This year I spray the area around noon to 2pm to cool it down. It helps a lot. I also have out water bowls and birdbaths, but the favorite way to shower for all the birds seems to be rubbing on the wet leaves of the peach and camellia trees while the sprinkler is running. Or the doves bathe on top of the umbrellas; Water is a prime concern and I have containers of it out everywhere....which I refresh daily to avoid mosquitos.

Sounds like a good idea, glad to see city officals caring about wildlife.

Yeah, I've often thought that many (but not all) of the so-called "serious" birdwatchers I have known are deluded when they style themselves as "scientists". The vast majority wouldn't recognize true experimental design if it jumped up and bit them. Many (again not all) of these folks have encyclopedic knowledge when it comes to bird identification, which is no small thing - but that doesn't make one a scientist. Nor does it give one carte blanche to become a bird-botherer. I prefer to do my watching in my own yard, and my listening, and all other birdly activities. Mostly from behind my patio door. I like to plant bird-friendly (and butterfly-and-bee friendly) plants where possible - which is no excuse for my backyard neighbor who planted trumpet vine along the fence, very far up a steep slope from HIS lawn, but leaving me to have to constantly root up the invasive vines all through MY back yard. Has he never heard of cardinal climber??? *sigh* As for feeding the birds - according to actual ornithologists, given that you are feeding appropriately (eg sunflower seeds, not bread crumbs, kind of thing) it does no harm and may do a bit of good in times of stress. Clean water is equally and sometimes more important. I'll not argue about the ecological soundness or lack thereof of the bird seed industry as a whole - but frankly, unless you're cobbling your own shoes from leather-providing animals that you raised on your native pasture; and are weaving your own cloth from the fiber you spun from your own flock of sheep or from the flax you grew and retted yourself, then wove that on the loom you built from wood you cut down on your own wood lot; AND you are making your own pottery cookware from clay you dug yourself - I don't think there's really all that much to say on this issue. The environmental impact of manufacturing the computers we are all using to access this forum on the Internet, and the network of manufacturing, mining, and transportation that supports all that (not to mention terrible working conditions for the workers who assemble the things) almost doesn't bear thinking about - but in any case, the use of birdseed pales in comparison. OK, I'm being a bit facetious - but in the general scheme of things there are far worse things we do on a daily basis than buy a 50 lb bag of BOSS to feed the birds. Most of them involve our ubiquitous use of cars. The number one thing you can do to save the environment (and improve your health) is to leave the car home at every opportunity and walk or ride a bike to get around as much as is possible. This will, btw, also go a long way towards improving the general health of the birds as well. Cleaner air is good for us all!

I'm really unhappy with my Swarovski binocs. They are great to look through, but the lens covers never stay on - the ones that cover the large end not only don't stay on to cover the lens, but the whole thing falls off...I've lost so many that I finally gave up. The hard plastic cover that covers the eyeball side of the lenses also seems to be a poor design. they were so expensive, I'd really like to keep the lenses from scratching, but it's impossible. I would never buy these again.