Wow! I've seen them flock but not in those numbers! They gather in an empty lot next to where I work and we watch their aerial stunts, it's like they play follow the leader but the leader changes every few moments. What's interesting is that two of our most invasive alien species of birds (european starlings and house sparrows) are both considered endangered in Britain. Makes you wonder if they don't get to the point where the species has outgrown it's natural boundaries and begins to decline. I know I would gladly ship all my starlings over there! We have another winter storm moving through tonight and the birds seemed to know as they were all very actively feeding at dusk. Typically the last birds that I see in the evening are cardinals and tonight when I looked out I counted 43! That was just at the back feeders so I'm sure that count is low. I tried to get a picture of as many as possible but the best I could do was 17. Taken through the window with flash so not my best but you get the idea ... Here is a link that might be useful:

Leslie, I find nest box traps work better in the early spring and summer; I run the bait traps durring the wnter, when I notice EHSs coming to the feeders. Of course, I safely release any native bird that wanders in. For some glorious reason I had only one male EHS this winter. I feed only black-oil sunflower seed; all the native birds love it and it's the least favorite of the EHSs. That's keeps them out of the area too. I bought my neighbor a 50# bag so she'd quit putting out the white and red millet that attracts nothing but vermin. She's delighted with all the song birds she's attracting now. There are probably dozens of native sparrows that are wonderful creatures, to be protected in every way. Like so many concerned blue bird and purple martin "landlaords", the sparrows that I trap (and the only ones that it is legal to trap) are the non-native, human-introduced, English house sparrow. Like so many introduced species, they are destroying our environment. I love the Chipping Sparrows, Song Sparrows, White-Crowned Sparrows, White-Throated Sparrows, Harris Sparrows, Lincoln Sparrows, Fox Sparrows, etc. and try to bring new birders' attention to them and all their charms and benefits. I also try to point out the fact we call EHSs "sparrows" is a misnomer. They are actually a weaver with bill designed to kill other birds, which I have seen him do far too many times. There's nothing like checking your martin colony and finding 14 hatchlings with their heads cracked open. After that, is was very easy for me to practice smart pest control. Have your Purple Martins returned yet? I'm still waiting, but I'm having to form a new colony now, so it will take more patience.

Our yard is small, but birds are encourage to visit. There are the hummers, of course. The common finches, goldfinches and house sparrows, mourning doves and Eurasian collared doves, towhees, wrens, bushtits, warblers, phoebes, ravens and crows, and migrating what-nots. In the winter I feed the white-crowned sparrows; always miss their songs when they leave for the summer. Lincolns, song sparrows and various others show up. Once I had a rare Harris sparrow. The escapee parakeets, and spice finches stop by. I discouraged the spice finches when their numbers topped 25 at a time--those things eat more than any other bird I know of for their size. The little piggies! Orioles visit occasionally. And then there are the Cooper's hawks that show up frequently. They go through periods when they will perch on the fence every day for a week, looking for the unwary. The urn water feature really attracts the birds. Even though I have saucers of water in multiple locations, invariably, the birds want to fight the flowing water by perching on the urn rim to drink. It is funny to watch them trying to master the skill. Bluebirds nest in the front yard, which is amazing considering we are in the middle of a tight-packed residential community! I would have thought it to not be bluebird nesting habitat at all. But they do, and often successfully fledge two broods per year. I pamper them with meal worms and Ochna shrub berries. Harris Sparrow Nov 2012 Mourning Dove

Hi Pat. Thanks for the kind words in the other posting. Here are my thoughts on bird feeding. You can’t wrong with straight black oil sunflower seed. For years I only fed BOSS and suet (and suet nuggets), and I attracted a lot of birds with those two things. Both options are affordable and easy to find. For anyone new to bird feeding, I would tell them to skip mixes and buy straight BOSS. In my early days of feeding, I did buy the mixes, but I had a lot of waste under the feeders because the birds sifted through the “filler” and mostly went for the BOSS. So I like to buy straight BOSS now. It wasn’t until the last couple months that I really started adding a lot of new feed options (and this is because I started reading books and learned how much more the birds will eat). I started feeding Nyjer/thistle, safflower, peanuts, almonds, pecans, hulled sunflower chips/hearts (just means no shell), cracked corn, mealworms, millet, and treats (like nut & seed logs, specialty suet blocks, etc). I even bought some blackberries the other day on sale and have the in the freezer now. I’ll get them out later when food is really scarce. If you buy store bought mixes, avoid the ones that say “milo” especially if milo is listed as the first or second ingredient… Those are usually the cheaper brands with lots of “filler” aka “milo”… And be sure to read what the mixes include, it’s important to know that whatever is listed first means the bag contains the most of that particular item. Millet is fine to feed. I just bought a bag of millet at my local feed store. I buy in bulk and wait for sales. My local feed store sells everything I need, but sometimes I order mixes and peanuts online because it’s cheaper. My favorite online stores are DrsFoster&Smith and FleetFarm.com Here’s what I’m currently using in my feeders- Tube feeders contain 90% BOSS with 10% premium nut mix Thistle tube feeder - 100% thistle (birds go crazy at this feeder) Hopper style feeder – one contains only safflower (I wanted to know if they would eat it, and they are). Another hopper contains 90% BOSS with cracked corn and nuts mixed in. (My fav feeder) – Droll Yankees - Dorothy’s Cardinal Bird Feeder – http://drollyankees.com/product/dorothys-cardinal-bird-feeder/ (Found it on sale at Walmart for $25) it’s an open/fly thru style feeder – and every morning I put out my premium mix in this. I have two suet feeders.. I have a seed log feeder and I just put out a treat called “nutsie” http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/pine-tree-farms-nutsie-classic-seed-log-40-oz-/0000000214011 I also have a mini open feeder that contains 100% thistle I have a couple ground feeders too with stuff for the doves and ground feeders. My husband says I've gone nuts with the birds... hahaha But I remind him, he was the one who told me years ago that "once you start feeding them, you can't stop" hahaha so I tell him I can't stop since he told me that :)