Hi Ted,

>My mother-in-law, in Victoria, BC, phoned me to say that they had a Fox
>Sparrow at their suet feeder...
>Her question was: Is this usual for this species?

Ted, after seeing a Fox Sparrow Passerella iliaca and a Song Sparrow
Melospiza melodia working over shards of BBQ-flavored Doritos, stale popcorn
and bread, I don't think there's anything intrinsically challenging in the
idea of sparrows or finches hitting something besides millet-seed, such as
on suet, any more than many of them turning carnivore in spring and summer
when there's sufficient caterpillars* and other larvae to feed themselves
and their young. Our impressions of what is 'proper' for them are often
conditioned by seeing most of them in an artificial situation, picking up
seed--usually millet--at feeders during the winter, but in the wild, I'm
pretty sure they'd take a greater variety of food-types.

*double-checking the spelling--it's one of *those* words--I found the word
'caterpillar' has a fascinating etymology: it looks like an old-time
portmanteau from Old French 'Chatepelose', literally, 'hairy cat', and the
verb 'piller', to ravage (and from which we get our synonym for looting,
'pillage'). Cool.

Michael Price A brave world, Sir,
Vancouver BC Canada full of religion, knavery and change;
mprice at mindlink.net we shall shortly see better days.
Aphra Behn (1640-1689)