Date: 6/19/26 6:41 pm From: Ann Kramer via Tweeters <tweeters...> Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Anna's Hummingbird
Hi Tom,
I understand; things change as our senses age and change.
It’s pretty easy to get an organic nest fill even on Amazon. I got some
with fluffy cotton like as well as more straw like pieces. But I’m sure you
made a lot of birds happy over the years.
We found that the chili pepper suet, also available on Amazon, works as a
deterrent for squirrels and rodents.
And thistle (nyger) and safflower are repellent to rodents. As a gardener,
I also use blood meal in areas to deter the squirrels and chipmunks.
Probably works on rodents as well
It’s good to simplify as we get older. Sometimes, I also just think it’s
fine to not worry about identifying birds and I close my eyes and just
listen to the beautiful orchestration of distinct birdsong around me.
I hope you can find a way to continue to enjoy what has clearly brought you
a lot of pleasure in the past, in a way that works for you.
And I want to thank you, from the birds, for all you’ve offered them over
the years. After all these years I still haven’t received a thank you
note!!!!
Ann
On Fri, Jun 19, 2026 at 6:13 PM Tom Benedict via Tweeters <
<tweeters...> wrote:
> Thanks for the link Nancy. I guess I’ll take down the lint cage.
>
> On a related note, I must admit that the longer I live the less I enjoy
> birdwatching. There was a time, not long ago, that I carried binoculars
> with me on every trip. In my youth, 60+ years ago my father and I birded
> with Hazel Wolf and Zella Schultz. Heck, I was even a Merit Badge
> counselor for the Boy Scout Bird Study merit badge when my sons were
> scouts. But the past 4-5 years it seems different. Maybe it’s that the
> hobby has grown so much and seemingly everyone is doing it now. Maybe it’s
> cognitive decline, but I seem less and less capable of identifying birds
> anymore. Sparrows, Finches and Juncos all look alike and I don’t even try
> with gulls anymore. I’ve stopped putting out bird seed in the feeders
> because of rats and squirrels. Stopped suet too for similar reason. Plus
> baiting is really not ethical. Or maybe I’m just losing interest in being
> interested things. Now I find out that the dryer lint I’ve been putting out
> for the past 60 years is likely harmful.
>
> The times they are achangin’..
>
> Tom Benedict
> Seahurst, WA
>
> On Jun 16, 2026, at 22:36, Nancy Crowell <nkcrowell...> wrote:
>
> Hi Tom,
> My understanding is that dryer lint is not recommended for bird nesting
> material and is potentially harmful. I am including a link to a helpful
> article about appropriate nesting materials from Cornell:
> https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/providing-nest-material-for-birds-dos-donts/ >
> Nancy
> La Conner
>
> Nancy
> "Images for the imagination."
> www.crowellphotography.com
> ------------------------------
> *From:* Tweeters <tweeters-bounces...> on behalf
> of Tom Benedict via Tweeters <tweeters...>
> *Sent:* Tuesday, 16 June 2026 20:54:14
> *To:* Tom and Carol Stoner <tcstonefam...>;
> <Tweeters...> <Tweeters...>
> *Subject:* Re: [Tweeters] Anna's Hummingbird
>
> We hang dryer lint in a wire cage and I’ve seen Anna’s plucking link twice
> in the past week. I would have thought that nesting season was over by now,
> but maybe not?
>
> Tom Benedict
> Seahurst, WA
>
> > On Jun 16, 2026, at 20:14, Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters <
> <tweeters...> wrote:
> >
> > This morning I spotted a female Anna's collecting the fluffy white stuff
> that carries the seeds of plants in the aster family. She had quite a
> mouth full.
> >
> > Carol Stoner
> > West Seattle
>
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