Rufous Hummingbird... photo by Pat

Pat inspired me to fill up our bird feeders today. Unfortunately, the dishwasher destroyed our nice hummingbird feeders, so I purchased a few cheapies at a local box store. HEY, it's for the birds! (Not HAY, that's for the horses!)

We keep our suet out year-round, attracting quite a few varieties of woodpeckers and other little brown birds (wrens?). But as of today (thanks to Pat for the reminder) there's a full meal deal hanging outside our kitchen windows: black sunflower seeds, fresh suet, and sugar water for the hummingbirds. I even put out a few whole peanuts for the jays.

Pat credits my grandma for the idea to put his feeders out last week. Grandma keeps her hummingbird feeders out all year and the hummingbirds stick around. She keeps an ongoing battle against squirrels attacking her bird feeders, and even tries to out-wit the large flickers (woodpeckers) who get into her "little" feeder and make a big mess.

I love hearing my grandma talk about her birding! She is 91 and keeps up her own 3 story house and most of the gardening, too. She cooks her own well-balanced meals, and drives herself to Mass almost every day. What an awesome lady!

Thanks to my awesome scientist, Eagle Scout cousin, Ryan, for the following added information for this post: There are two species of hummingbirds that are common in Washington. Rufous Hummingbirds, like the male shown here, are only around for the breeding season. Anna's hummingbirds stick around all year.