Tip that helps some is to use a heavy copper pipe fitting. I think mine is about 1 1/2 in. long & 3/4 in inside. Why heavy? Well, bird flew off with light weight 1. I just found it after digging up my side yard so bird took it about 50 ft. Birds like pretty things, GF was sorting beads out on patio & went inside & came back out & found some beads missing so she went back in & watched & scrub jay made 3 trips when she came back out, she saw where the jay took them & went & got them. Jay was not happy & scolded her so she took beads inside. Anyway what the copper does is help it not get so slimy. A good spray from garden hose would get some of it out but then it needs good scrubbing every few days. I just wash my "Birds & Bloom" free stained glass birdbath out each day. It doesn't hold too much water & by evening it is dirty & I don't want dirty birds around so I wash it out & scrub about once a week as some of the grout lines start getting mold on them(more of a rubbery grout- guess it's for birds) Yes, I did win it several years ago for getting the magazine!! It keeps my birds happy. I've used cleanser on it & scrub brush but rinse 3 times. Jan

We had a bad problem downtown, but the city did something about it. Before that, I had 3 hanging around, always kind of spooked me out, but I wanted to get along with them, started feeding them along with the carnivore woodpeckers, dry cat food and meat scraps cut up and no bones to drop on a roof. That went on awhile, watched one eat a piece of apple one day, interesting birds. But then a sick one showed up on my front porch at the water dish I set out, and I found 2 dead in the gutter a half block down, laid there for 2 or more weeks weeks, ick. We have a problem with West Nile, they had already done their sampling, confirmed its presence in the area, so wouldn't come pick them up. I thought they were a health hazard and if it had been in front of my house, would have disposed of them. So West Nile took its toll on them, now we have a fair amount of owls, that may help keep them away. Haven't been bothered by them for a couple years now, same with the larger brown woodpeckers, large flock of them. So nature has its ways, but you don't want West Nile in your area if you don't have it already. People in the two-state area have died from it (mosquitoes the carrier), usually elderly or with compromised immune systems.

Ironically, the weeds, overgrowth, and tangle of vegetation are very attractive to most birds. It provides them with cover and nesting sites, and there are usually berries, seeds, and insects in the vegetation as well. They don't care that the plants are too close together, or whether a bed is edged perfectly or sprayed for weeds. I had a very overgrown yard when I moved here 10 years ago, with many invasive plants. The only thing I continually remove are invasive plants, and in stages because I've done most of the work myself by hand. Sometimes I wish it had gone faster, and been "overhauled" as you are doing, but I tried to preserve habitat. I left some thickets of vegetation, and left "snags" or dead trees up in the back yard purposely to provide nesting habitat for cavity nesters (and Black-capped chickadees are cavity nesters). I had Bluebirds nesting in snags here for 2 years, until the snags fell over. I also leave up some dead branches for perching and insect value. I would suggest that you go over to All about birds, and read about the BCCD. Also observe the little chickadee's habits in your yard, where they like to "hang out", and perhaps leave some habitat intact throughout the overhaul.

well, the horns were definitely more like the head of the lark, but you are right I would have noticed the specific markings of a mature male. Horned larks are not really in our area except rarely in the winter. Streaked larks are around but I have never seen one. Probably more likely would be juvenile house finch since I have oodles of finches. thanks