There is a pair of Western Kingbirds that arrive in May or June in our area...same tree in my neighbor's yard. After I got our yard cleared of all the junk and weeds about 4 years ago, I began to notice them sitting on the wires watching for bugs to feed the babies. This year they were a big help with the squash bugs...the parents were kept busy feeding as many as 4 begging babies. But they left earlier than usual (are we in for an early Winter? it's much cooler than normal and has been for the last month). When they left the squash bug population exploded and wiped out the squash and most of the cucumbers and some of my small melons. I resorted to squishing them with my fingers as I watered and pulling all the squash plants. I planted some Fall squash and I'm hoping they do not return! Peggy

Yes! Camouflage! My first house had a compost heap when a bought it and trust me, it was the least thought-out compost heap ever. It was literally a pile in a corner--no fences, no lattice, no bin. I didn't know a thing about composting, I just dumped kitchen scraps on top and used a small shovel to turn it into the top of the pile. It just looked like a small pile of dirt. BUT, come spring, whatever seeds went in with the food (pumpkin, cantaloupe, cucumber....) would pop up and cover the heap. I'd move most of them to the garden, but I'd always leave a pumpkin because I'd get the BEST pumpkins from the compost heap. And....my heap would be completely hidden by the huge, healthy leaves. I could still add things, too. I'd just lift a leaf and dump more on. It was wonderful. Great soil, no smell, and beautiful pumpkins. I loved that heap. Definitely think camouflage!

When we first moved here, I wanted to "save" every bird and critter that needed help, and quickly learned no one else around here was as worried about the wild things as I was. Our first year, a big owl crashed THROUGH the fiberglass skylite panel on the roof of the chicken coop. He cut his head and hurt a wing. I called all over southern Oklahoma and no one (least of all the local Fish and Wildlife people) were interested in helping that owl. I was crushed. Finally, we moved him to an adjacent small guinea coop/pen and put the guineas in with the chickens. We left the door open, and he finally flew away on his own after several days. I refused to catch mice for him, so he had to live on canned cat food for those few days. I guess if you live in an area where wildlife is very abundant, people don't get as excited about one injured bird. If blue jays are engangered, you can't tell it here! We probably are overpopulated with birds, though, because we put out food for them and have a constant water source. I HAVE noticed that there are more birds than usual hanging out around the garden and eating bugs in the garden. Birds are a terrific method of pest control, so I encourage them in every way possible. We ALWAYS have a pair of owls who stay together all the time and hunt together. One is a really big barn owl, and we call him Hooty. The other is a little screech owl, obviously named Screechy. You never see one without the other, which is fascinating. They've been here as long as we have. I don't know if the current Hooty and Screechy pair are the actual same Hooty and Screechy pair that we first saw in 1999. I think it is an odd pairing. I feel sorry for them....the crows harass them relentlessly and try to run them off. Our owls are mostly out at night, but every now and then I see them out late in the morning. For all the birds we have coming to the feeders, predator birds do not come into the yard much. Maybe the cats and dogs help keep them away? Oh, and the Purple Martins also like to chase off other birds attempting to "hunt" in their territory too. Dawn

If you’re composting food scraps they are a natural attractant to any wildlife. You can lessen the attraction by keeping meat, dairy and high fatty scraps out of your compost pile. When adding food scraps, make sure to mix them into the pile for faster composting. Don’t add food scraps to an open compost pile.