Mystery Bird

This bird has been visiting my bird feeders all winter and enjoying himself in my bird bath. Can anyone tell me what type of bird he/she is?

He/she flickers its long tail around a lot and enjoys splashing in the bird bath. I tried using the What Bird website to identify him/her but without much luck.

Wooden Birdhouse

Here is another wooden birdhouse that I like to make. This birdhouse is a little more complicated than your average square bird house because of the angles that need to be cut.

Wooden Birdhouse Pieces

First I cut all the wooden pieces that I need to assemble the birdhouse. These were all cut from a 8 inch by 8 foot stock cedar that I got at Lowes Home Improvement store.

Find Center on Wood

I find the center of the front piece and mark it on the wood. This will be used to angle the roof.

Marking the Right Side

I came down 2 1/2 inches on the right side and marked that point on the front piece.

Marking the Left Side

Then I repeated marking the left side two and a half inches down.

Marking Bottom

Next I marked a mark 1 2/16 in on each side of the bottom.

All Lines Drawn on Wood

As you can see here I have connected all the marks and it’s starting to look like the front of the birdhouse. This is how I get the dimensions for the front and back pieces onto the wood.

First cut

I cut both the front and back pieces at the same time on my table saw. That way the wooden pieces match up exactly.  I used my steel ruler to line up the blade with the line on the piece I’m cutting before I cut them, so that the cut will be perfect.

Always read and follow the safety instructions and directions that come with your saw.

Hole Drilled

After the front and back pieces have been cut I drill the hole in the front for the birdhouse entrance.

Nailing side of wooden birdhouse

Time for assembly – Notice that I have cut an angle in the side piece to line up with the top so the roof will fit.

Wooden birdhouse side

Here is the assembled front, back, and sides of my wooden birdhouse.

Roof added to Birdhouse

Next the roof was added. These are just wooden squares with a wooden dowel on the top. The dowel was nailed from the each side with the air nailer.

Birdhouse Bottom Drainage

I measured and cut a bottom for the wooden bird house and drilled drainage holes in it. The bottom is fastened on with 4 wood screws. These can be removed later allowing cleaning of the birdhouse.

Wooden Birdhouse Finished

The birdhouse is now finished and ready for paint. I added a birdhouse predator guard to the entrance hole. You can see how I make these in my post on birdhouse predator guards

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Painting Wooden Birdhouse

I shingled the roof of the birdhouse with a single square piece of shingle cut from a standard three tab shingle. The shingle was glued down with liquid nails. Your can leave the birdhouse unpainted or paint it. I prefer to paint them because they hold up longer.

Remember that we don’t ever paint the inside of a birdhouse

I painted the outside edges blue and the front, back, and sides red.  This is a nice little wooden birdhouse that is fairly simple to make. Remember to enjoy the birds!

Grosebeak at bird feeder

photo by US Fish & Wild Life Service

People living in apartments and condos do not have the privilege of their own wide open backyards where they can express their personal love for nature. Especially bird lovers living in apartments feel deprived from the outdoor beautiful creatures. This is why these people resort to other measures like putting up lots of plants indoors and in their balconies of their apartments to give them the feel of nature. There are many measures that you can adopt to enjoy the sight of birds flying over to your balcony and chirping away beautiful songs for you in the morning.

With so many bird products now available to us in the market, attracting birds to your apartment building is not that difficult. All birds are different and have different needs. Bird information is widely available from many websites on the internet for the different species you are trying to attract to your balconies.
If you visit a bird shop you will be able to see a whole range of different styles and types of birdfeeders for all purposes. From this wide range you can easily pick a bird feeder that is compact enough to fit will in the balcony of your apartment, while also serving as a decorative item along with all the other plants you probably have put up. A bird feeder is the best way to attract birds of all kinds. Each bird eats different food. You should know what food comprises of so that you can fill your bird feeder with it to attract as many birds as possible.

Another important thing that you must be providing in your small little balcony is a source of water for your birds to be attracted to. Birds living in the cities are always looking around for a source of clean water. If they find that from your balcony they will definitely be coming back again and again. Simply providing them water is not enough. You have to make sure that the feeder is frequently washed and refilled with fresh water. This is because birds not only love drinking water but also loves splashing around and bathing in water. Therefore if you are providing these birds with both their favorite seed along with a fresh supply of water, there is no way they won’t come to your apartment.

In case you don’t have enough space to hang around multiple feeders for different purposes then you can always buy one of those universal bird feeders that have sections for both seeds and water all in one. This is one of the best ways you can use to attract beautiful birds to your apartment balcony.

Today I thought I would give you a rundown of the top bird websites, in my opinion. There are other organizational websites that I like but they have very little useful information for the backyard bird watcher. The below websites are all very useful websites.

1. All About Birds This has to be my favorite website. There is more information on this website than any other that I’ve found. All About Birds is a community website hosted by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. They have the best Bird Guide available online, in my option.
2. Project FeederWatch Another Cornell Lab of Ornithology website where you can help track bird migrations and bird numbers by counting the birds in your backyard.
3. 10,000 Birds This a great birding website. The 10,000 Birds name is based on the fact that there are about 10,000 different species of birds and the website attempts to cover them all.
4. Fatbirder’s Top 1000 Birding Website This is where you can find a list of great birding websites ranked by the amount of traffic they receive.
5. What Bird A great website that helps you identify North American birds by visual aid or by name.
6. Fatbirder North America Using this resource you select the state where you reside and you are presented with a wealth of information including birding society’s and organizations in your area, parks and preserves in your area, plus much more.
7. Hummingbirds Everything you wanted to know about attracting, identifying,  and feeding hummingbirds.
8. National Bird Feeding Society the ultimate bird feeding resource to find out what bird are eating.
9. Birds and Birdwatching on Facebook This is where the average backyard bird watcher, like me, can share photos and talk about their bird encounters.
10. National Geographic Birds Has an amazing collection of bird pics that you won’t find anywhere else.
11. Environment for Americas This is the not for-profit that creates educational materials for bird education. They are better know for their promotion of Bird Day. A day to make people aware of our birds.
12. National Audubon Society Birds Another website with a ton of quality bird information.
13. 99Birdhouses Did you honestly think I would leave off my website-Laugh.

Well that’s my roundup of websites. Let me know of any websites you think are helpful for backyard bird watchers. Happy birding!

Bird Eating From Hand

photo by “G” jewels

Watching birds up close is really awesome experience. Birds are one of the most delicate, sensitive yet inquisitive creatures Mother Nature has blessed us with. In our daily lives especially living in big cities we often get to see crows and pigeons and other ordinary birds. But seeing other wild birds like blue jays, chickadees, gold finches, tufted titmouse, etc are really exquisite looking birds with unique habits of their own that make them stick out from the crowd.

Bird watchers are always looking for ways to attract such birds to their gardens so they can observe them from a close distance. If you read more about birds you will get to know about their particular behaviors. Some birds are not as timid as other species of birds and therefore getting them to eat from your hand will not be that difficult.

But still there is a lot that you should know before beginning with this. First of all you have to find out a way to attract birds to your place. To do that you should know what the particular bird is and what their favorite foods are. If you are trying to attract birds to your garden or backyard then its best you put up bird feeders. Once birds realize that this garden has fresh food on a daily basis it will keep coming back again and again.

When the birds make it a habit of visiting your garden on a daily basis then you should move on to the next step. You should start sitting with them not too close but at a distance while they are all eating. Make them get used to your presence. While sitting in front of them talk to them in slow and gentle voices and try to sit as still as possible.

Then one day, do not fill their feeder with food but instead stand there with some feed in your hand. Stand as still as possible. Birds will notice that you have feed in your hand. They might not come to you instantly and you might have to do this a day or two before they become used to your presence. Finally they will become tamed and will jump into your hand to eat out of your palm. This is truly an extraordinary experience feeding a bird from your own hand. Good Luck!

Blue Jay

photo by US Fish and Wildlife Service

Native to the northern continent of America is this beautiful bird, named The Blue Jay. This bird belongs to the passerine category of birds, which includes almost half of the whole bird species that we are aware of. The passerine category of birds usually represents all those birds that are mostly called the perching birds or sometimes even the songbirds.  These birds can be found residing in almost all of Eastern and Central America and South of Canada. Compared to the average bird size we can term these Blue Jay birds as medium sized birds. To give you a more precise picture, these birds are 9 to 12 inches long and weigh around 2.5 to 3.5 oz and have a wingspan of 13 to 17 inches.

The Blue Jay is probably most colorful as compared to other birds belonging to its species. The color of the Blue Jay bird is a very beautiful bright blue. The plumage of the Blue Jay birds is like a mid – blue color to lavender – blue shade that covers its crest, wings, back and tail. It has a white face with a somewhat off – white underside.

The color of the Blue Jay bird’s neck is beautifully contrasted with a small strip of black that extends to all sides of the birds head. Apart from that the bird’s bill, eyes and legs are also fully black.  On the Internet you can find plenty of sites that give you detailed Blue Jay information with up close and prominent pictures of the Blue Jay along with its babies as well. The only main distinguishing feature between the male and female Blue Jay is that you will notice the male birds to be slightly larger than the female Blue Jays.

Blue Jay Migration Map

Above is a range/migration map of the Blue Jay . Reprinted with permission from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.  A customizable map with different geographical areas, times of year, and sightings for the Blue Jay can be found here.

Blue Jay food consists of many different types of food. But they mainly feed on seeds and various types of nuts like soft fruits, acorns and even peanuts. These birds are also capable of snatching insects that are found in the air. They also pick up food found in bushes, shrubs, trees and also the ground. The Blue Jay food in winter mostly comprises of berries and seeds. The Blue Jay nests are built together by both partners, male and female birds. The Blue Jay nest is made in the shape of a cup using leaves, twigs, moss, grass, roots and sometimes even mud to make it more secure. You will mostly find Blue Jay houses around 8 to as high as even 30 feet above the ground. The Blue Jay house can carry two to seven eggs. Babies of the Blue Jay are brooded by female birds for around 8 to 12 days once they are hatched. These Blue Jay babies remain in their nests with their parents for one or two months after which they fly away.

Most bird lovers like attracting these beautiful birds to their gardens by putting up Blue Jay feeders in their back yards. Its best to leave some feed like peanuts in these Blue Jay feeders because this will attract them more. Another reason why people love to observe these birds can make so many different sounds. This is why the Blue Jay songs have become very famous. More interestingly these birds can also copy humans and the songs of Blue Jays often involve high pitched notes.

Peterson Bluebird House

This is my version of the Peterson Bluebird House I found on the USGS site here.  I’ve had really good luck getting birds to nest in it and wanted to make a second one with a cooper roof. This one has a shingled roof.

Measure and Mark Lumber

I first measured and marked the lumber for cutting using measurements that were close to the measurements the USGS used for theirs.  I like to estimate a lot when it comes to my measuring and change things up a bit.

Measure Birdhouse Side

I put a board behind the wood test fit and then traced out the front piece.

Trace Birdhouse Side

After cutting out the first side I traced it and cut a second duplicate of the first piece.

Drill Bluebird House Hole

I drilled a 2 inch hole in one side of the front pieces. The hole was drilled almost completely through then was turned over and I finished drilling from the opposite side. This prevents the wood from breaking out on the backside. Also note that I used a scrap piece of wood behind the piece I drilled. This scrap piece also helps prevent breakout and drilling into your table.

Angle Was Cut In Wood

Next the top and sides were cut into at an angle.

Wood Test Fit

The angle pieces were then test fix.

Peterson Birdhouse Wood Pieces

After all the pieces were cut and the hole drilled the Peterson Bluebird House was ready for painting.

First Coat Primer Paint

Everything got a good coat of white primer and then when that dried I painted everything a second time with white paint. Except the front and back pieces.

Peterson Bluebird House Sides

The Peterson Bluebird House front and back pieces were painted blue. The blue let the grain of the wood show through.

Nail Face Side

Now everything got nailed together. The front was nailed to the back piece.

Peterson Bluebird House Bottom

Next the birdhouse back side and top were nailed on.

Bottom Was In Screwed In Place

The bottom was put on with screws so that it could be removed later to clean out old birds nests.

Measure Cooper Roof

Next a piece of cooper flashing was measured and cut for the bluebird house roof.

Folding Cooper Top

The edges of the cooper roof were folded over to eliminate the sharp edges.

Cooper Roof Bluebird House

The cooper was tacked onto the top of the birdhouse after applying some weather proof liquid nails.

Peterson Bluebird House

The new Peterson Bluebird House was mounted on a column outside my garage.

Blue Bird

photo by andrusdevelopment

Birds are truly beautiful and fascinating creatures which are fun to observe. Our nature has countless species of birds which color our world making the scenery around us even more radiant. The world of birds is amazing and these tiny creatures are loved by all. One of the most exquisite species of birds is the blue birds of North America. There are three types of blue birds, the Mountain blue bird, the Western blue bird and the Eastern blue bird.

They have a very dazzling look to them due to their contrasting brown breasts with the blue plumage. On the other hand the Mountain blue bird is completely blue. What sets them apart from other birds is the amazingly beautiful blue bird body. Their color combination creates such a vibe that they are hard to miss when flying around or sitting on a tree.

Eastern Bluebird Migration Map

The Eastern blue birds are especially loved due to their so called singing when creates a distinctive “chur – lee” sound which is like music to the ears. If you are interested in finding Eastern blue birds you should search from Canada to Mexico and make sure you don’t miss the Honduras and east Rockies. Kentucky blue bird is another name given to the eastern blue birds because they mostly inhibit in Kentucky. The Kentucky blue bird frequents our feeders more than the other blue birds.

Above is a migration range map of the Eastern Blue Bird. Reprinted with permission from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.  A customizable blue bird migration map with different geographical areas, times of year, and year ranges for the eastern blue bird, western blue bird, and mountain blue bird can be found here.

You can also view bluebird nesting with some NestWatch Cams with pictures for the eastern and western blue birds that are operated by the Cornell Lab .

Western Blue Bird Migration Map

The California blue bird is again another alias for Western blue bird and Mountain blue bird. These Western blue birds usually migrate to the Southwestern deserts and the North Central valley’s when winter is upon them. Above is a migration range map of the Western Blue Bird . Reprinted with permission from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

These western blue birds are famous for not making their own nests. Rather they prefer to roost in nests that have been excavated by other birds in some previous season.  Blue bird nesting is often taken over by other aggressive birds like the European Starling. These aggressive birds are seen shoving out innocent blue bird babies from their nests to occupy them.

Blue birds were once quite common in the United States of America. However in the recent years, due to excessive use of pesticides, the number of predators and the fact that our natural habitat keeps decreasing each year, these beautiful birds are fast becoming extinct.

Mountain Blue Bird Migration Map

A Mountain Blue Bird usually migrates to places at a lower elevation whenever food becomes scare or when it gets too cold. The same goes with other blue birds that are living in higher latitudes in which case they mostly head to the south of the country.  Above is a migration range map of the Mountain Blue Bird. Reprinted with permission from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

The facts about blue birds have marveled bird lovers for centuries who are dedicating their time and energy to gather more and more information about these exquisite birds. Blue bird feed consists mostly of insects but it’s interesting to note that they also peck on small fruits and other creatures. Their most favorite fruits seem to be berries like the Poison Oak berries, the Southern California Grapes and the Black Chokecherry along with other types of berries.

The most admirable habit of blue birds is that whenever they spot some blue bird food they are not greedy to devour it all by themselves. Rather they fly away to inform others of the place too even in times when blue bird food is scarce. This is why you will often see around 20 to 30 blue birds at a time in one bush.
When preying on insects, the way in which blue birds spring on their victim is incredible to witness. These mesmeric birds set attentively on tree branches looking out for their prey. As soon as they spot one they swoop down to the ground in such a breathtaking fashion that one cannot help but marvel.

Blue Bird Eggs

photo by mullica

It’s also interesting to note the blue bird nesting which they construct in the shape of a small bowl within which the male and female blue bird mates. This mating of the blue birds mostly takes place in the summer season. The blue bird eggs are incubated for around two weeks and the female bird is able to lay four or five eggs at a time.  Above is a picture of a nest with blue bird eggs. The period during which both parents of the young blue birds care for in their nests varies from 15 to 20 days and watching the scene is simply magnificent. Consider yourself extremely lucky if you have.

Other blue bird facts that you may not be aware of is that these special birds brood twice in one season and sometimes the young ones from the first brood even stay around in the nest for a longer period only to help their parents in looking after the second brood of young birds.

The way in which the male and female blue bird interacts to find its mate is sheer purity and the most tender loving – making every known. The bluebirds can produce two to four broods during the summer season. It all starts by the male blue bird identifying a potential site for a nest after which he then tries to attract a female blue bird.

The male blue bird sings in his extremely catchy and sensational voice for days until a female blue bird is attracted by the tune and flies over. Upon the arrival of the female blue bird, the male blue bird then tries to win over the female blue bird by fluttering his wings and showing off his earthly brown breasts and bright blue coat while he sings in the most melodious way ever. Then the male blue bird perches up next to the female blue bird and caresses her in the most loving way ever while still singing to her.

Slowly he tries to persuade the female blue bird to accept the nest as a way of showing her acceptance to their mating. The funny part is that even in birds rivalries exist. Sometimes during this period another rival male blue bird shows up and both the male blue birds end up fighting with each other in an attempt to win over the heart of the beautiful female blue bird. The whole scene is incredibly ravishing.

Other blue bird facts include their average life span which is mostly somewhere between 6 years and 10 years. They are omnivores and weigh around 24 to 31g and are from 16.5 to 19cm in size. In other words you can say that a blue bird is around the same size of a tea cup. The diet of a blue bird is almost 60 to 80 percent insects. These exotic birds enjoy living in wide park lands, open pastures and spacious meadows.

You will often see them perched up on fence posts or on branches of small trees waiting around to catch any prey. The scientific names of blue birds differ from their common names. The Eastern blue bird has the scientific name of “Sialia Sialis”, the Mountain blue bird is called Sialia Currucoides and the Western blue bird is called Sialia Mexicana.

It’s hard to differentiate between these three types of blue birds but upon close inspection you will be able to tell which one is which. They are mainly distinguished by the color of their coats. The adult male of the Eastern blue bird has a belly that is a bright white color along with a reddish – brown throat, while the female Eastern blue bird has a white belly except that it has a pale brown outline around it and a throat that is orange – brown.

Mountain Blue Bird

photo by Firstmac

On the other hand the adult male of the Mountain blue bird has flanks and a breast that is more of a pale sky – blue color. It doesn’t have that much of a red color to it but you may notice traces on its breast and throat. The Mountain blue bird has a rather straight posture. The female Mountain blue bird has a grayer back a pale chin and a pale sky – blue breast. Finally the adult male of the Western blue bird has a blue coat that is brighter and somewhat purplish in color. The bright coat is contrasted with gray – blue belly and a brown breast.

The female Western blue bird has wings and tail of blue – gray color along with a gray back, throat and head contrasted with a brown abdomen. Therefore if you’re aware of these colors you will be able to distinguish which blue bird is from which category.

If you’re looking for ways to attract these ravishing birds to your garden setting a bird bath will be a great option. Not only do bird baths look enticing in gardens they are absolutely loved by blue birds. The Western blue bird is famous for enjoying bathing and drinking in bird baths.

Another important Eastern blue bird fact is that they do not like bathing in bird baths that are totally exposed. This gives them the fear of being attacked by hacks or by birds if the bird bath is too hidden in a bush. Therefore the placement of your bird bath is an important and careful decision to make. You have to give it just the right amount of sunlight and shade. Putting your bird bath where there is a tree or bush nearby with a little vegetation underneath it would the most ideal location.

Along with you bird bath, if you plant berry bushes you’ll have flocks of blue birds visiting your garden enhancing its beauty by their presence and sensational singing. Since bluebirds dwell in nests another smart way of attracting them is to build a natural looking nest box. And to ensure the aggressive European Starlings don’t take over your nest box, make sure it has a smaller hole for entrance. That way only the small blue birds will be able to fit in.

Once you have flocks of blue birds coming to your garden its time you start providing blue bird food to them to keep them coming back. A special favorite of bluebirds is mealworms. Placing some in your nest box will have them in your nest within no time. Another hot favorite blue bird food is raisins that are softened. To do that you can sprinkle a few in your bird bath. That way when the blue birds come over to bathe in your bird bath they will also enjoy pecking on the raisins while they enjoy their bath.

One of the saddest facts about bluebirds is that this exotic species is fast on its way towards extinction. To stop this from happening many blue bird enthusiasts have gotten together to form a blue bird society with the intention of carrying out activities to help in the conservation of this endangered species.

There are many such non – profit blue bird societies like the Maryland Bluebird Society, Virginia Bluebird Society and the Pennsylvania Bluebird Society along with many others spread all over America. These societies are actively working to spread awareness to the American of this special bird to make others join in the cause of protecting the natural habitat necessary for the lives of these bluebirds. They are constantly working to spread as many blue bird facts as possible while educating young children on ways to protect them.

These enticing blue birds are not only sublime to look at and hear they are also quite beneficial to us in a number of ways. The most important and prominent benefit that we get from these alluring blue birds is that they actually our gardens and crops from damage. The way they do this is obvious.

Blue birds love insects. They eat insects like grasshoppers and cutworms in large quantities. These are the insects that are harmful for our crops. Therefore having a few blue birds in your field will actually help you in keeping your garden and crops free from the damage caused by such insects. If you haven’t yet seen a blue bird in your life you really should check out some blue bird pictures like the ones in this article so you can get an idea of what they look like.

The next time they come flying over and pay your trees a visit you can take some shots of them and contribute to the countless blue bird galleries online. Now you must understand why people go so goopy over these gorgeous and fascinating birds.

birdhouses

photo by moonlightbulb

As I surf the internet, I’ve noticed that people are getting really creative with building and designing birdhouses and bird feeders.  People are making unique birdhouses and unique bird feeders out of almost anything they can find. Lately I’ve been bookmarking these sites and thought I would share some of them with you. So lets get started!

1. Shelly over at Shellys Card Blog made a unique birdhouse from a recycled Kleenex box.
2. Diane’s Texas Garden was given a birdhouse that was made from bird seed.
3. 99Birdhouses of course my wife and I have made bird feeders from bagels.
4. The Stampin’ Bean made a birdhouse out of paper.
5. Wandering Scissors made a birdhouse out of card board.
6. Over at the Warm Biscuit they made a birdhouse out of Popsicle sticks.
7. Disney’s Family Fun made a unique bird feeder from a soda bottle.
8. We (99birdhouses) also made a bird feeder out of a pine cone on our website.
9. American Gourd Society has some information about making a birdhouse from a gourd.
10. This birdhouse was made out of wine corks .
11. Interbent.com featured a bird feeder made from an old computer. When you go to the link here scroll down the page to find the computer bird feeder.
12. We also did a Milk Carton Bird Feeder here at 99birdhouses.
13. Better Homes and Gardens made a birds house from sticks and twigs.
14. At Thrifty Fun your can find a bird house made from a plastic juice bottle.
15. Bird Feeder on YouTube made from recycled plastic.
16. Bird Feeder made from recycled jar and wood.
17. Bird Feeder made for a recycled Milk Jug.
18. Man from the Netherlands recycles billboards to make into birdhouses.
19. These birdhouses were made from birch logs and old signs.
20. Here are some unique birdhouses were made from old boots.
21. How about this purple martin house made from foam insulation, wire mesh, and aluminum.
22. You can even make a birdhouse from cinder block.
23. Maybe you would like a birdhouse made from CD Cases.
24. I’m not sure what to classify these birdhouses from LondonFieldWorks under. I do they look like they took a lot of work.
25. How about a birdhouse made from license plates over at Birds and Blooms.

If you find any unique birdhouses or bird feeders on the internet please share them in the comments below.

Dead Birds

photo by ZebrasHateHail

As some of you may have known birds have been falling from the skies in record numbers.  On New Year’s Eve 1000 birds fell from the sky in Arkansas in the city of Beebe and dead fish were found on the shores of a nearby Arkansas town.  The birds are mostly black birds and starlings. Dead birds in mass numbers have also been found in other states.

According to a BBC article, US scientists believe the cause to be fireworks.  However, since the news broke towns in Sweden and New Zealand are reporting dead sapper birds.  In the meantime about 2 million fish washed up dead in the Chesapeake Bay and reports are coming in from all over the world of dead fish including Haiti, Sydney, Brazil, and Wales.

Some people are saying that fish and birds die all the time and that when it makes big news everyone’s dead fish and birds suddenly make the news.

I guess only time will tell if were facing a real issue or not but I won’t be to broken hearted if the starling numbers decline.

Tufted Titmouse

photo by Dawn Huczek

The tufted titmouse is probably one of the bravest little birds that I have encountered. When my wife and son made the milk carton bird feeder the titmouse was its very first visitor. The bird feeder was hung two feet from the back door so I wondered if any bird would brave coming so close to the sliding glass door.

The titmouse has been known to eat from peoples hand after a little practice. They are as curious about us as we are them. The bird is a small songbird in North America that whistles a peter-peter-peter sound.  They look like they have little Mohawks or spiked hair. Typically they are gray in color with large black eyes and a black forehead. Sometimes they have a splash of yellow color under their wings.

Two Tufted Titmouse

photo by Peanix

I’ve seen the tufted titmouse eating from the ground and on the feeders. They are very versatile when it comes to food. The titmouse will grab a seed and carry it to the nearest perch where he/she will break it open with their bill and eat it. The little bird seems to get along with the other species of birds at the feeders. The tufted titmouse does not migrate as some other birds do but prefers to hang around a food source year-round.  Below is a map of their current range which is expanded north as global warming does.

Tufted Titmouse Range Map

Above is a range map of the Tufted Titmouse. Reprinted with permission from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.  A customizable map with different geographical areas, times of year, and sightings for the tufted titmouse can be found here.

The little titmouse eats insects, seeds, nuts, and berries. I haven’t found many foods that they don’t like. They really loved the peanut butter pine cone that I made a few weeks ago.  They also like to store food for later use and their nests are made in holes in trees or some other cavity such as a birdhouse.

When building a tufted titmouse birdhouse use the dimensions specified on my post about Bird House Hole Sizes and Dimensions.  The titmouse is a welcomed bird at all my feeders and birdhouses and I hope they keep coming back.

Four by Four Martin House Column

I started construction of the purple martin house with some one by eight cedar wood. I cut and nailed, I used my air nail gun, the wood into a square column that would fit loose around a 4 by 4 post.  The column will be used to support the house and be the core of the martin bird house. The reason I want the column to fit loose is so the birdhouse can be slid up and down on a four by four allowing for easy access and cleaning.

Martin House Column Floor Stop

Next I used some scrap cedar to create a one by two stop for the first floor six inches from the bottom of the column. Again this was nailed using the air nail gun.

Martin House First Level

The first floor was measured and cut from the scrap plywood that started the project. The first floor is the smallest of all the floors. As you can see from all the pencil marks I measured a few times before getting it right.

Martin House All Levels

I made the other three levels progressively larger to give the martin house a tapered look. In the photo above I test fit all the floors over the column to make sure everything would line up correctly when it was assembled.

Martin House Second Level Added

Here the second floor was added six inches above the first floor using the same size stop that was used on the first floor. The stop for the third floor was also added six inches above the second floors.

Martin House Fourth Level Added

The fourth floor stop and level was added again six inches above the last floor.

Martin House Floor Framing

The framing to sturdy up the floors and give something to mount the sides to were then added.  This process took awhile because I had to notch each floor to match the two by two stock that was used for the framing and get each floor measured correctly.

Martin House Siding

I cut the siding from some quarter inch underlayment that I had around the garage left over from a kitchen floor project I did a few years ago.

Martin House Siding Complete

Now all the siding is done It is starting to look like something. Each floor is at least six by six or larger as required by Purple Martins.

Martin House Gables

The martin house gables were cut from the same plywood that was used for the floors. I will continue this project after it warms up outside or later in spring. It’s very cold outside and my little garage heater doesn’t heat so well.

Until next time happy birding!!

Happy New Year – Welcome to 2011 from 99 Birdhouses.

Hope you have a great year!

Squirrel on Bird Feeder

Photo by Noel Zia Lee

Squirrels are acrobatic. These arboreal rodents are so persistent, that over the years it has become the number one menace to many bird feeders. They can jump high and reach bird feeders that are hung near launch points, often trees and nearby walls. These determined creatures can even reach as far high as your laundry lines, telephone wires and even other cable wires just to steal your bird feeds away.

With all the things that squirrels can do, it is not a wonder that they can outwit many feeders. Most of these instances can occur especially when the bird feeders are not strategically hung. So if you are not going to station your feeders at strategic points, they will likely be reached by these menacing creatures. These squirrels can outfox you and crack your poorly-devised bird feeders open in just a short time. Or even worse, they can take your feeders off from where they are suspended and flee with a happy steal.

Thus, squirrel proofing your bird feeders is an essential step for you to take even before you hang them. It is your best security from not getting outsmarted and it is your best defense from the birds’ greatest foes. To squirrel-proof your feeders well, here are the important steps for you to take.

Follow best practices

Many experienced bird feeders share practices in the open. Most of them are available not only in magazines and books, but as well as online resources. These practices will teach you strategies that can certainly keep your feeders away from squirrels. You can also learn different ways on how to hang these feeders well and most importantly, you can learn the standard measurements that many experienced feeders follow.

Use standard measurements

If you are hanging feeders from tree branches, locating them at least twelve feet away from other vertical structures like walls and tree trunks is most recommended. This will take out possible launching points from aiding squirrels to reach your feeders.

Also, hang or suspend feeders at least four feet above the ground. In such way, you can be sure that your feeders will be higher than the maximum jumping capabilities of squirrels.

In cases when you are suspending your feeder off a line, always follow the standard 8 feet measure for lines. This will prevent squirrels from accessing your feeds successfully.

If you are mounting your feeder to a pole, use poles measuring at least five and a half feet in length. This will let you post the pole into the ground for at least a foot and still able to set your feeders off the ground for at least four feet.

Utilize squirrel baffles

Utilizing squirrel baffles is one great way to prevent these menacing rodents from gaining access to your feeders. Baffles are dome shaped metal structures that deter squirrels from climbing further to the feeders. They are sloped to eliminate viable surfaces that squirrels tend to cling onto when climbing poles. Most of the time, these sloped surfaces also makes the squirrels to slide off, lose out of balance and fall back to the ground.

Baffles are generally effective especially on small and less determined squirrels. However, due to the persistent nature of these rodents, these baffles may not guarantee that your feeders are 100% safe from squirrels. There are still a few recorded incidents of persistent squirrels successfully gaining access to feeders despite the deterring baffles attached to its pole.

Choose squirrel-proof feeders

With the capabilities of squirrels to outwit bird feeders, many manufacturers have realized the need for squirrel-proof feeders aside from baffles. This special type of feeder is equipped with weight sensitive, spring-loaded technology that seals access to feeding ports whenever squirrels are onto the bird feeder. Often, it is covered with a chew-resistant metal cage that only beaked creatures can gain access.

Squirrel-proof feeders are secondary tools of owners to ensure that the birds’ greatest foe for seeds would find seeds very difficult to steal. This is another way for you to strengthen you measures against squirrels and to ensure that your birds will get to eat their feeds.

Use Squirrel Repellents

Another brilliant idea to secure your bird feeders from squirrels is the use of repellents. These repellents are commercially sold in spray, granular or concentrated formulas. Home-made repellents are also effective, but they should be done with care for some ingredients may harm birds as well.

Squirrel repellents generally work by dissuading squirrels with their smell without bothering the appetite of birds since they do not have smelling senses.

Befriend the Squirrels

Though squirrels are the number one menaces for bird feeders, these rodent creatures can also be lured away from the feeds. The very best way is to befriend these creatures. Some of them may be wild, but they are easily befriended with treats. Cracked corn, peanuts and corncobs are their favorite. The only drawback that you may face after befriending squirrels is the fact that they would tend to come back to you to have some more treats. There may even be times that these furry rodents would bring their friends to get treats from you too.

If you stop feeding them, other bad scenarios can happen. They may start to feed on your plants or crops in your garden or lawn. The worst thing is – they also have tendencies to ransack food from your house if ever they will find ways to get in. So, think first before you befriend these rodents.

Purple Martin Plans

I had a couple extra sheets of plywood in my garage that I was looking to do something with and decided to start a Purple Martin House. The first step was to find some purple martin plans. For this task I went online and searched Google to come up with a list of plans to consider.

The first plan was on the USGS website, one of my 5 favorite places to get birdhouse plans.  This purple martin house plan here http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/wildlife/ndblinds/purple.htm is the typical square box type plan and is very similar to the martin house I made when I was 11 years old.

The second plan was also on the USGS website here http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/birds/birdhous/purple.htm and was also the square box type martin house plan. I was a little worried about these plans because they have the rap around porches that are now cause for some concern.

According to Dr. Eugene S. Morton of the National Zoological Park, porches that allow other baby martin birds to wander are dangerous to the other baby birds health. The baby purple martins steal food from the others causing starvation from the younger birds. You can read more about the problem at The Purple Martin Conservation Association.

There are also a lot of gourd purple martin houses out there but that wouldn’t help me get rid of my extra plywood in the garage.  So I decided on building something similar to the sixteen room martin house designed by Percy Algernon Taverner in the early 1900′s.

The plans were in the Canadian Field Naturalist 1922 3rd edition.  They use to be available on Google Books but I can’t find the Canadian Field Naturalist  issue there any more, maybe they took it out of their library or I’m just missing it somewhere. If you find it let me know and I’ll link to it.

I did save the birdhouse plans off a while back and have a screen shot at the top of this page. My purple martin house will be loosely based on this design. So I’ll collect my materials and in Step 2 I will start building the martin birdhouse.

*Update*

John, one of my readers, sent a link to the plans here.   You can find two plans there and instructions on how they build there version of Percy Algernon Taverner’s purple martin house. Very nice!

Birds at Feeders

Birds are not really hard to please when it comes to food. However, there are some delights that will almost guarantee visitors to your feeders.  Providing tasty recipes that could fill their bodily needs for the season is just the most perfect thing to do, if you are trying to  draw a specific variety of birds

So, if you are planning to host just a buffet of seeds in your lawn or backyard, think again. Your visitors can also find them elsewhere. The most memorable feeding affairs for them are those that giving them the best meals – feeds that they can never find in any other places. This is the main reason why any birders prefer home-made delights for birds than those that are readily available in stores. For with what you serve your feathered guests will always be remembered, even after their migration period.

Things to Consider When Preparing Bird Food

After having decided to prepare not-so-ordinary treats for birds, the first thing that you should is to consider the essentials in preparing bird food. For bird feeds are not just about making them tastier for birds, but as well as creating a dish that would supply the nutrients that they need. For instance, during winter, birds need more fats or energy-giving nutrients. So if you are planning to prepare dish for them during winter, make sure that it is rich in fats and energy-giving nutrients to help them survive the cold season.

Another consideration is the types of birds that you will be feeding. If you only prefer certain types of birds to in your lawn and you think that a medley of seeds would just do the trick, you are mistaken. The feeds may just end up eaten by the wrong species of birds if you do. Of course, most birds eat seeds but not all birds prefer the same variety of seeds.  This is where your knowledge on the preferred seeds of your chosen species would be beneficial.

The black oil sunflower seed is most popular among many birds like the blue jays, cardinals, nuthatches, sparrows, chickadees, doves and even some varieties of finches. Safflower seeds are also great substitutes for sunflower seeds. Most of the birds that love sunflower would also eat safflower seeds.  Thistle seeds on the other hand are popular among gold finches and other bigger species of finches, juncos, mourning doves and towhees. Peanuts are also delectable treats for some types of birds like woodpeckers, grosbeaks, sparrows, nuthatches, titmice, blue jays and buntings. Mallards, bluebirds, and pheasants are attracted to corn; while magpies, redpolls, flickers, creepers, warblers, kinglets, orioles and sapsuckers prefer raw suet. There are also a number of birds that would find fruits tasty. Some of these types are the mockingbirds, thrushes, robins, tanagers, waxwings and sapsuckers. Other delicacies for birds include insects, worms and even other sugary treats.

Thirdly, you have to check if the other ingredients (aside from the seeds) that you will use can be safely included in the recipe. For some ingredients may not be tasty or needed by the birds that you are feeding. Some of them can be fatal. Examples of these ingredients include chocolate, apple seeds, avocado skin and pit (though the toxicity of avocados is still hotly debated), onions, alcohol, tomato leaves or stems, salt, caffeine and raw dried beans.

Lastly, before you experiment, it is best for you to first try some of the tried home-made bird recipes by experienced feeders. Later, when you get a little experienced, you can twist these recipes and create variations that you find most attractive for your feathered friends. There are numerous recipes that have been shared by experience feeders. Some simple recipes are as follows.

Simple Bird Food Recipes

Like with seeds, a medley of ingredients may not give you good results if you are just very particular about the types or species of birds in your garden or lawn. So, if you are a choosy feeder, the wild bird recipes may not be for you.

Sweet Cherry Recipe for Wild Birds

1. Melt two cups of rendered suet and 1.5 cups of chunky peanut butter in a bowl.
2. Add 1.5 cups of oatmeal, a cup of sunflower seed hearts, a cup of crushed graham crackers and a cup of dried cherries.
3. Mix all ingredients thoroughly.
4. Place on a cookie sheet and then cool before serving.

Berries Medley for Wild Birds

1. Melt three cups of rendered suet and 1.5 cups of chunky peanut butter in a bowl.
2. Add a cup of oatmeal, a cup of sunflower seed hearts, half a cup of corn muffin mix and a cup of assorted berries (blueberries, strawberries, cranberries and cherries).
3. Mix all ingredients thoroughly.
4. Place on a cookie sheet and then cool before serving.

Peanut Butter Dough for a Variety of Birds

1. Add 1 part crunchy peanut butter, 1 part vegetable shortening and 2.5 parts of white flour in a bowl.
2. Mix all ingredients until doughy.
3. Serve in feeders.

Oriole Bird Food Recipe

1. Boil 6 parts water in a container and then add 1 part sugar.
2. Mix thoroughly and cool before serving in feeders.

Humming Bird Food Recipe

1. Boil 4 parts water in a container and then add 1 part sugar.
2. Mix thoroughly and cool before serving in feeders.

Recipe for Fruit-lovers

1. Mix 2 cups of dried and chopped apples, 2 cups of chopped and assorted nuts, 2 cups of raisins, a cup of chopped prunes and a cup of squash seeds or dried melons.
2. Serve a little in feeders and store the rest in cold temperature for future feeding.

Allied Heated Bird Bath

Today I thought I would try something a little different. My wife gave my an Allied All Seasons Heated Bird Bath With Stand (Model 400) from Allied Precision Industries out of Elburn, Illinois . She bought it at the online at Duncraft Wild Bird Superstore as a Christmas present for me.

I thought I would walk you through the assembly and give it a little review. The bird bath is 12″ in diameter and has a 30″ metal stand. The water dish is only about one inch deep and the heater is 50watts so it’s not going to kill your electric bill.

I want to say that I’m in no way connected to or making money for this review from Allied or Duncraft. I’m just giving you my honest opinion about the bird bath. Also read all the assembly instructions that came with you bird bath before assembling it. Here I’m just telling you how I assembled it and may have missed something.

Allied Heated Bird Bath In Box

The heated bird bath came in the box above.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Parts

Most of the parts for the heated bird bath comes in three bags. One bag has all the screws and the bracket that holds the legs to the top pieces. The second bag contains the legs and the third contains the top leg pieces.  Then there is the heated bowl. It has a removable heating element so that you can use it all year around. Also pictured above is the warranty information.  The heated bird bath comes with a one year warranty.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Assembly Parts

Here’s the bag of small parts. One bracket, 2 silver wood screws to use if your mounting it on a wooden deck rail, 6 small black machine screws for mounting the bottom legs and top legs, and 3 wire stakes to hold down the birdbath to the ground.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Foot

Locate the three feet pieces. these are the ones with ends as seen above.

Heated Bird Bath Base Assembly

Next, I slid the three bottom legs into the bracket and then screwed in one of the black machine screws for each leg. I did not like the fact that the screw holes were not threaded well. When inserting the screws into the hole I had to push pretty hard to get them to thread the holes as they went.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Stand

I repeated the same steps for the three top legs and the base stand is assembled.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Top

I then pushed the base stand into the heated bowl. The base stand holds the bowl in place by friction. It’s pretty snug!

Allied Heated Bird Bath Outside

I put the heated bird bath outside and plugged it into an extension cord that’s plugged into a grounded outlet.

I was sure to use a grounded outlet and only use an outside rated extension cord.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Secure Feet

I secured the feet with the wire stakes by putting them over the legs and pushing them into the ground. This is a little bit of a challenge if you ground is frozen like mine was.

Allied Heated Bird Bath Assembled

Over all I think this is a nice and simple little heated bath for birds. I do think it could have been a little simpler to put together if the machine screws were self tapping screws or the holes had been tapped better.

But I really like the it! I’ll keep you up to date and let you know if the birds really like it, after all that’s what is important.

You and your family have a wonderful holiday!

Female Cardinal

Heated Birdbath

Photo by jans canon

Heated Birdbaths

Most birds will certainly hang around your place during winter if you have put up a bird feeder. However, you will get a greater diversity of Aves if you are to set up heated bird baths as well.

For most natural water resources during winter are frozen and many birds find it hard to look for water on their own.

Like for most living creatures, water is essential to many birds.  They need shallow bodies of water to drink from and to bathe in. Thus, with a heated bird bath in your lawn, you can help these creatures survive the cold season. They will be able to drink from it after feeding, and they bathe in it to ‘heat up’ during winter. For birds, the best feature of heated bird baths is the warmth it provides. Since winter is too cold, birds would certainly need a place to get warm up during these days; and heated bird baths are the answer to this need.

Heated bird baths are also appealing places for birds to mingle with the other species. Some may not believe that birds flock together during winter to survive, but they do. Getting close to other birds is essential to them. The heat makes them warm and the social experience makes them more willing to survive the cold winter. With a heated bird bath in your place, you can encourage birds to live and survive from the warmth and comfort that they can get whenever they will drink together with the other kinds.

Another reason why birdbaths are installed by birders is that they attract a variety of birds more than bird feeders. Since not all birds like seeds but all birds need water. Therefore, if you want to lure more varieties of birds coming into your place, it is always best to install birdbaths near feeders. It makes the bird feeders highly visible and it makes the lawn more appealing for different types of birds.

Heated Bird Bath Essentials

There are several types of heated birdbaths. Some are just typical installed with birdbath de-icers, while others are already especially equipped with heating units. Heated birdbaths also vary in sizes and shape. Many birdbaths that are intended for small birds are shallow. Often, they are set with small stones or pebbles for birds to walk on. The larger types are intended for bigger species of Aves. A few of them are not elevated, making them easy to access like ponds. Birdbaths also come in different designs. The most popular birdbaths have contemporary styles and the most expensive are made of marble or other etched stones.

Nevertheless, birds are mostly not concerned about the aesthetic form of the heated birdbaths. What matters to them is to simply fill their needs especially during the cold season. So, if you are planning to install a heated birdbath at home, the first and foremost thing that you have to realize is filling their needs. Aesthetics should only come second. Here the essential considerations of most experienced birders when putting up heated birdbaths.

• Nearby perches – Birds love birdbaths set near natural perches. These places serve as natural refuge for them whenever possible enemies will come to prey on them. They also prefer heated birdbaths set with pebbles or small stones in it. This makes drinking and bathing a lot easier for them.
• Plants – There is nothing more comfortable for birds than a bathing and drinking area surrounded by plants or trees. This makes them feel more at home and comfortable.
• Appropriate Size – Larger birds need deeper and larger birdbaths like sprinklers types. While smaller birds only need shallow filled birdbaths to keep them from drowning.
• Regular Maintenance – In all types of birdbaths, regular maintenance is necessary to prevent the accumulation of fungi, algae and bird droppings. This is a must to ensure that the water that you serve will just be fine for our feathered friends.

Bird Suet

Photo by di_the_huntress

Bird seeds are popular delights for birds but some species still may rarely eat them for meals, like the bluebirds. This is why birders also introduce birds suet. Many types of birds are attracted to home-made suet. It is even more preferred by birds than the commercially available suet recipes since most commercial varieties are often greasy and cannot bear up to warmer temperatures. So, if you are planning to introduce home-made suet to your feathered friends, here are some few essential things to remember.

• Birds love peanut butter that is why many types of effective suet contain crunchy peanut butter. Cheaper types of peanut butter tend to be greasier, so suet feeders often use the more expensive kinds.
• Dry suet ingredients can change their qualities over temperature changes, so it is most important to keep their textures crumbly for birds.
• Beef suet can turn rancid if the temperature rises over 70 degrees. Thus, you should never use them if you expect the temperature to climb.
• Clarified and melted beef suet is less likely turns rancid over temperature changes; but they are not digestible to many birds due to the presence of high saturated fats.
• Many birders are very cautious about the use of vegetable shorting; however, there have already been many attests from birders telling that they pose no health risks to these Aves.
• Synthetic onion nylon bags do not easily break and birders who used them only found birds trapped in it. That is why these types of bags are not recommended as suet holders.
• Some commercial varieties of food, mostly made of bakery products or peanut nuggets, are delectable to birds. The key to discovering preferred food treats for birds is to simply observe the types of food that your preferred birds like and then test them.

Bird on Suet

Photo by quinet

Bird Suet Recipes

There are some bird suet recipes that can help you attract the birds of your choice, often they are home-made suet. If you want to try to do them on your own, here are some easy suet recipes preferred by experienced birders.

Bluebird Meal Suet Recipe

1.      Mix 1 part corn syrup, 1 part crunchy peanut butter and 1 part lard (you can also use melted suet or bacon grease as substitutes) together.

2.      Add 5 parts of the old-fashioned oatmeal to the mixture.

3.      Stir well and then serve in log feeder holes.

Live Meal worm Suet Recipe

1.      Plunge ½ cup of live meal worms in ¼ cup of hot beef tallow.

2.      Add ½ cup of completely thawed blueberries and ¼ cup of creamy peanut butter.

3.      Mix all ingredients thoroughly.

4.      Cool or freeze until solid.

5.      Serve with chopped nuts, cracked corn or bird seeds.

Meal worm Suet Cakes

1.      Melt 2 ½ cups of peanut butter and 1 cup of lard in low heat.

2.      Mix ½ cup of egg shells, ½ cup of sunflower seeds and ½ cup of crushed peanuts.

3.      Add 6 cups of cornmeal and 5 cups of flour.

4.      Stir all ingredients until crunchy.

5.      Refrigerate and then serve with mealworms.

Meaty Suet Recipe

1.      Mix 1 cup of each of the following ingredients: crunchy peanut butter, white flour, vegetable shortening.

2.      Add 4 cups of yellow cornmeal.

3.      Add ½ to 1 cup of bacon drippings or melted beef suet.

4.      Stir well until doughy.

5.      Cool then serve in suet bags.

Miracle Suet Recipe

1.      Melt lard to room temperature.

2.      Add raising, peanut hearts and sunflower hearts. Then stir.

3.      Mix in flour, oil and cornmeal.

4.      Stir until it crumbles and cut into chunks when serving.

Songbird Delight Suet Recipe

1.      Mix 4 cups of yellow cornmeal with 1 cup of unbleached flour and 1 cup of crunchy peanut butter.

2.      Add 1 cup of sunflower seeds, 1 cup of unsalted ground peanuts, ½ cup of currants or chopped raisins.

3.      Mix well.

4.      Add 1 cup of suet or melted lard.

5.      Mix until it crumbly.

6.      Chill then serve.

7.      If intended for long term use, store in freezing temperature.

Suet Variant with Berries

1.      Mix 1 cup of each of the following: melted crunchy peanut butter, lard and flour.

2.      Add 2 cups of each of the following: quick oats and corn meal.

3.      Add 1/3 cup of sugar and berries then mix well.

4.      Cool in a pan.

5.      Cut into small squares and then serve.

Suet Variant with Cottonseed

1.      Finely chop ½ cup of nuts and ½ cup of raisins.

2.      Mix with 1 cup of each: plain flour, cottonseed meal and applesauce.

3.      Stir well.

4.      Add 2 cups of melted lard and 4 cups of cornmeal.

5.      Mix until crumbly.

6.      Add lard if the mixture is too crumbly or add a little flour if it is too greasy.

7.      Cut into pieces, place on a cookie sheet and cool in the fridge.

8.      Defrost for about 15 minutes in a microwave.

9.      Then, serve as desired.

Suet Variant with Sunflower Chips

1.      Mix 1 cup of each: crunchy peanut butter and whole wheat or unbleached flour.

2.      Add four cups of cornmeal then stir well.

3.      Add 1 cup of each: sunflower chips and finely ground nuts (or peanut hearts).

4.      Add half a cup of cut-up raisins or Zante currants.

5.      Add 1 cup of rendered and melted suet.

6.      Mix until crumbly.

7.      Cool and then serve.

Winter Suet Pudding Recipe

1.      Boil water and margarine in a large saucepan.

2.      Add grits and then stir until mixture thickens.

3.      Remove from heat.

4.      Add 1 cup of peanut butter, 1 cup of raisins and peanut hearts.

5.      Mix well then cool before serving.