Evening star., 1946-01-28
This and That
By Charles E. Tracepeu.
WESLEY HEIGHTS

Dear Sir:
One Of your correspondents recently
complained at the loss or departure of
his purple finches. Well, I've got 'em.
There are Is on my two feeding stations
right now.
only two are adult males. The females
and the young males Cwho can tell them
apartD are SO scrappy that not even our
cardinals and mockingbirds can cope
with them.
Il would gladly swap all but the two
grown males for a couple of those eve
ming grosbeaks you mentioned What
Kind OF provender do the grosbeaks
prefer?
Cordially, D. r. C.
"P. S.-Five bluebirds just arrived"
Changes in weather usually result In
the advent of new species to particular
feeding station.
1t is always advisable to watch the
garden carefully at such times, if one
is interested in bird life.
Almost anything from quail to gros-
beaks may fly in.
Often these new species-new for the
given yard-remain only a few minutes.
or perhaps hours.
just few hours before the last sleet,
a dozen Snowbirds, or juncos, few into
garden a block from our own birds.
They never appeared at our station.
Reports came in, that change in
weather, of pileated woodpecker, over
near Cabin John, the first the watcher
had seen in 80 years.
Purple flnches came to many feeding
stations in various parts of the city and
suburbs.
Wesley Heights is in the "bluebird
belt" as it has been called, and probably
has between 100 and 200 of these beauties
every winter.
In our Is years in Chevy Chase, Md,
we have never seen bluebird in fall or
winter, and only one pair in spring.
So communities which have bluebirds
may count themselves fortunate.
AS for the pileated woodpecker, few
of us will ever see one in the backyard
Purple dnches, of course, are much
commoner, and from now on, for several
weeks, may be expected in almost any
suburban yard.
Song sparrows, best friends of many
winter gardens, fly in during bad weather
to many places which have not known
them before.
This is happy event, for there are
few birds more likable and desirable
The sight of one of these fine sparrows,
perched on a gate, singing in the cold, is
something to make one forget all about
strikes for the moment.
Currants are desirable food for song
sparrows and juncos, and may be tried
for lure of the evening grosbeak. A few
OF the latter have been seen in various
sections. Zone was reported in this
column in Bethesda in 1944)
CurrantS are not too large, and should
be spread along the driveway very care
| fully, forming sort of trail.
No sooner had we put out boxful of
them in this manner that sleety morn
ing, than half dozen song sparrows and
a dozen snowbirds hoped through the
| fence and came toward them.
| The appearance of these birds was
| almost magical
| 1t had something staged about it. just
as if the birds, previously not in the
| yard, had been waiting for the currantS
| to be put down.
1t was amusing to watch the little
| fellows eat greedily.
Raisins, too, make an excellent lure in
winter.
Both currants and raisins should be
tried on all strange species. Many winter
visitors will not eat the hard seeds and
grains put in most feeding boxes, trays
and stations. Some of them would eat
but are timid about approaching place
where so many birds are gathered.
Currants and raisins spread along q
driveway, or put in wide circle on the
| snow, will be easily seen, and often lure
strange birds almost instantly.