Hi, Ruth and Tweeters

I never bring my feeders in and there is a small one outside the
library window (second floor with large cedars a few feet away). I've
had flying squirrels come to this feeder for years. When it's dark, I
put some peanuts around the little tray and have often seen the
squirrel taking them. At time, my son would be working on some music
project with all the lights on, but it didn't seem to bother the
squirrel. Anyway, I also have barred owls; in fact this mid-morning
one was sitting on a tree by our yet-hardly plowed street ignoring me
and crows. He's usually in the back. However, my sightings of the
squirrels have been much less this fall and winter and, as I
understand it, flying squirrels are a favorite food of barred owls.

Kind of like years back when I had a family of quite vocal screech
owls. Then, a great horned owl was heard occasionally and the screech
owls no more. So goes forest life.

I am quite envious of those with evening grosbeaks. For the nine
years we lived in New Hampshire, we had them in large numbers every
winter. True, they gobbled sunflower seeds like mad, but I was richer
then. I loved their happy-seeming musical calls and the bright colors
on the snowy landscape. I think in the 20+ years I've lived here I
had them on my feeder once: all five of them!

Cheers, Diann

Diann MacRae
Olympic Vulture Study
22622 - 53rd Avenue S.E.
Bothell, WA 98021
tvulture at vei.net