WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.480 --> 00:00:04.040 KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The 2 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:10.080 House Whisper on demand on the iHeart Radio app. Hey, 3 00:00:10.519 --> 00:00:14.000 welcome home. I'm Dean Sharp the House Whisper. I design 4 00:00:14.119 --> 00:00:18.000 custom homes and on the weekends. Right now, I am 5 00:00:18.039 --> 00:00:22.399 your guide to better understanding that place where you live. 6 00:00:22.719 --> 00:00:29.800 We love, love, love talking about your home, whether it's architecture, design, construction, 7 00:00:30.280 --> 00:00:35.399 DIY stuff, all things that make a home truly a home. 8 00:00:35.479 --> 00:00:37.880 And guess what we're doing today on the show. Well, 9 00:00:38.600 --> 00:00:41.359 I had mentioned this yesterday for those of you who 10 00:00:41.399 --> 00:00:46.479 don't live in southern California, we are having a real, live, 11 00:00:46.880 --> 00:00:51.159 actual spring. I mean the kind of spur that other 12 00:00:51.200 --> 00:00:53.799 places in the country regularly have. I don't know why, 13 00:00:54.560 --> 00:00:57.960 I don't know what it means afterwards, but normally and 14 00:00:58.000 --> 00:01:00.640 so cal you know, I was born in raised here. 15 00:01:00.960 --> 00:01:05.400 Normally spring pops in, you know, a good month ago, 16 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:10.200 and it's just a slightly cooler version of summer, just 17 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:15.640 sunny every day and warm but not hot. But this weather, 18 00:01:15.959 --> 00:01:19.799 this weather, it's rain, it's sunshine, it's cloudy, it's misty, 19 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:22.879 then it's sunny again. Now it's cold, now it's warm. 20 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:28.439 This is a legitimate, full blown North American spring that 21 00:01:28.480 --> 00:01:32.359 we're having. And we weren't thinking about this kind of 22 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:36.000 weather when we put our show schedule together. But today 23 00:01:36.159 --> 00:01:39.200 we are talking about spring, and I'm talking about the 24 00:01:39.280 --> 00:01:43.239 life that is happening or could be happening in your 25 00:01:43.359 --> 00:01:48.439 own yard. Every springtime, I take some time to give 26 00:01:48.480 --> 00:01:55.319 attention and draw information up on birds, bees, flowers, trees. Yeah, 27 00:01:55.319 --> 00:01:57.519 I know it rhymes. I didn't mean for that to happen, 28 00:01:57.879 --> 00:02:01.760 but and today's the day. Today, I've got three get 29 00:02:01.840 --> 00:02:04.280 I should say, up to three guests on the show. 30 00:02:04.359 --> 00:02:07.400 I hope they all show up, but the plan is 31 00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:09.680 to have three guests on the show today. We're going 32 00:02:09.759 --> 00:02:13.400 to be talking first about backyard birds and how to 33 00:02:13.439 --> 00:02:16.120 bring more of that life and beauty and how important 34 00:02:16.159 --> 00:02:19.000 it is as a home designer. It's critically important for 35 00:02:19.120 --> 00:02:23.439 me to introduce you to the ways to bring the 36 00:02:23.560 --> 00:02:27.800 nature that our homes displace back into our yards. So 37 00:02:27.879 --> 00:02:31.120 we'll first be talking to my good friend Richard Armording 38 00:02:31.280 --> 00:02:34.759 from wild Birds Unlimited today and we're going to get 39 00:02:34.840 --> 00:02:37.840 kind of the update on birds, and then my dear 40 00:02:37.879 --> 00:02:41.840 friend Nicole Palladino from Bee Catchers is going to update 41 00:02:41.919 --> 00:02:44.599 us on the state of bees. And then I hope 42 00:02:44.639 --> 00:02:47.639 certified arboras Bob Loft will be in here with me 43 00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:51.039 to talk about what we should and shouldn't be doing 44 00:02:51.199 --> 00:02:54.680 with our trees this time of year. Too many people 45 00:02:54.759 --> 00:02:57.000 do too much to their trees this time of year. 46 00:02:57.039 --> 00:02:59.680 So if any of that applies to you, you are 47 00:02:59.680 --> 00:03:01.800 not going to want to miss it. Let me introduce 48 00:03:01.840 --> 00:03:04.960 our awesome team. Elmer is on the board. Good morning, Elmer, 49 00:03:05.280 --> 00:03:09.960 Good morning, Dean. Elmer has such energy today, I'm gonna 50 00:03:09.960 --> 00:03:12.439 tell you because he's working on like two hours sleep. 51 00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:18.759 So it was a good night last night, Elmer. It 52 00:03:18.800 --> 00:03:22.479 was a good night. You did your job, and so 53 00:03:22.599 --> 00:03:25.599 now he's making it work for us. Producers. Matt and 54 00:03:25.719 --> 00:03:29.319 NICKI are standing by to take calls, and yes, I 55 00:03:29.360 --> 00:03:32.599 am going to try and take calls today. So there 56 00:03:32.759 --> 00:03:35.400 they are. They are they are here? Are they are 57 00:03:35.439 --> 00:03:36.039 they near mic? 58 00:03:36.199 --> 00:03:36.400 Yeah? 59 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:39.919 They mic both here? All right, turn them on. I 60 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:46.319 can't see him here. Hello, Hello, good hello, Hello, Hey guys. 61 00:03:48.159 --> 00:03:51.240 It's good to talk to you. You know, it's almost 62 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:54.360 it's so rare that you guys are actually near a 63 00:03:54.400 --> 00:03:56.759 microphone when I'm introducing you in the mornings, because you're 64 00:03:56.759 --> 00:03:58.960 already screening calls. I already see one call up on 65 00:03:59.000 --> 00:04:02.800 the board anyway, us saying hi and so happy that 66 00:04:02.840 --> 00:04:08.199 you guys are here. Thanks for having us. And you 67 00:04:08.240 --> 00:04:10.759 can tell Nikki, you can tell from her accent that 68 00:04:10.840 --> 00:04:14.520 she is from Georgia. I'm pretty or Kentucky. I'm pretty 69 00:04:14.520 --> 00:04:20.480 sure he's south right here. And of course, my buddy, 70 00:04:20.480 --> 00:04:24.439 Eileen Gonzalez at the news desk, Good morning, Eileen, Good morning, Dean. 71 00:04:24.519 --> 00:04:28.160 How's it going. It's going good, It's going good. It's 72 00:04:28.639 --> 00:04:32.040 cloudy and rainy and drizzly, but you know, it's springtime, 73 00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:34.480 so I'm embracing the whole thing. Do we have a 74 00:04:34.519 --> 00:04:37.160 tea of choice this morning? Oh? We're three cups in, 75 00:04:38.199 --> 00:04:43.240 Oh ginger lemon to start today. Ease myself in, and 76 00:04:43.279 --> 00:04:46.279 now two cups of green tea later. I'm ready to go. 77 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:51.160 She had an entire plan, She had a full on 78 00:04:52.160 --> 00:04:54.959 she had a full on tea strategy. I did he 79 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:57.519 planned it out all right? Well, all right, so the 80 00:04:57.600 --> 00:05:00.800 team is here taking good care of you along with me, 81 00:05:01.120 --> 00:05:03.439 I would normally say, sitting across the table from me, 82 00:05:03.639 --> 00:05:07.720 my better half, Tina, she is here, She is here. 83 00:05:09.959 --> 00:05:13.160 I think she's just stepped out of the studio talking 84 00:05:13.199 --> 00:05:16.519 to Nicole Palladino right now, but we will hear from Tina. 85 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:18.680 I promise we'll get her back in here so she 86 00:05:18.680 --> 00:05:21.680 can say hi to everybody. All right, let's get started, 87 00:05:21.720 --> 00:05:25.600 shall we. We will sit down here in just a 88 00:05:25.600 --> 00:05:29.639 couple of minutes and have a discussion about backyard birds 89 00:05:30.079 --> 00:05:32.399 with my very special guest, Richard armor Ding. 90 00:05:32.600 --> 00:05:36.959 Right after you're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on 91 00:05:37.079 --> 00:05:39.399 demand from KFI AM six forty. 92 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:45.079 Dean Sharp, the house whisper here at your service to 93 00:05:45.160 --> 00:05:47.560 help you take your home to the next level. And 94 00:05:47.600 --> 00:05:50.519 the way that we are doing that today is we're 95 00:05:50.519 --> 00:05:54.319 talking about springtime, the birds that visit us, the bees, 96 00:05:54.680 --> 00:05:57.600 all of those kinds of things that we actually want 97 00:05:57.959 --> 00:06:02.319 more of in our gardens. Let's start off today with birds, 98 00:06:02.399 --> 00:06:06.560 and I have my dear friend, very special guest, Richard Armording, 99 00:06:06.839 --> 00:06:09.800 who is the owner of wild Birds Unlimited out here 100 00:06:09.839 --> 00:06:14.199 in Thousand Oaks, and my own resident bird expert. Richard. 101 00:06:14.240 --> 00:06:16.680 Thanks for being on the program again, my friend, thanks 102 00:06:16.680 --> 00:06:20.079 for having me. Let's talk about the state of birds 103 00:06:20.279 --> 00:06:20.800 right now. 104 00:06:21.319 --> 00:06:25.959 Springtime is an exciting time and for birds and for 105 00:06:26.000 --> 00:06:30.680 the birds in our backyard. Spring's nesting season, and so 106 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:37.240 birds are very active building nests, attracting mates, feeding their 107 00:06:37.279 --> 00:06:40.839 babies once they hatch. So there's a lot of great activity. 108 00:06:42.279 --> 00:06:46.000 The usually the male birds are singing a lot because 109 00:06:46.000 --> 00:06:49.959 they want to establish territories, they want to attract a female, 110 00:06:51.040 --> 00:06:53.560 so there's a lot of great sounds. There's a lot 111 00:06:53.560 --> 00:06:54.439 of great activity. 112 00:06:54.920 --> 00:06:58.079 So it's the dating scene, the dating and the family 113 00:06:58.160 --> 00:07:02.240 scene happening all around us. Another just side note, and 114 00:07:02.279 --> 00:07:05.639 we'll talk more about this with one of our other 115 00:07:05.680 --> 00:07:10.600 guests this morning. But not a great time to kind 116 00:07:10.600 --> 00:07:13.399 of randomly prune trees. 117 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:18.079 Definitely not. Birds are building nests and one of the 118 00:07:18.160 --> 00:07:20.879 things they do is they try very very hard to 119 00:07:20.920 --> 00:07:24.199 make the nests invisible because they want their babies to 120 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:27.639 be safe from predators, and so they go to great 121 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:30.800 lengths to make them almost impossible to see. And so 122 00:07:30.920 --> 00:07:33.800 if we're out there trimming our trees, we may not 123 00:07:33.959 --> 00:07:37.279 see a nest that's got eggs or chicks in it. 124 00:07:38.800 --> 00:07:44.759 So once that's disrupted, that's it. That's most of the time. Yeah, 125 00:07:45.000 --> 00:07:46.959 I mean, there's the rare story of like I put 126 00:07:47.000 --> 00:07:49.120 the nest back up in it. Yeah, But yeah, but. 127 00:07:49.360 --> 00:07:51.600 If a nest falls out with eggs in it, the 128 00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:55.040 eggs are going to crack. If the babies are not 129 00:07:55.839 --> 00:07:58.120 self sufficient and they fall on the ground, there's a 130 00:07:58.160 --> 00:08:01.639 good chance that they won't make it. So springtime is 131 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:05.199 not a good time to do any kind of tree pruning. 132 00:08:06.079 --> 00:08:11.279 It's best to wait until fall. October, November, early December 133 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:12.360 is the best time. 134 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:14.279 For the sake of the trees and for the sake 135 00:08:14.319 --> 00:08:18.240 of the birds as well. Yeah, because birds the little misnomer, 136 00:08:18.800 --> 00:08:21.360 big misnomer. I think a lot of people, other than 137 00:08:21.399 --> 00:08:25.879 maybe Big Bird on Sesame Street, birds don't live in nests. 138 00:08:26.120 --> 00:08:27.319 They don't live in their nests. 139 00:08:27.560 --> 00:08:30.560 No, that really the only time they use nests or 140 00:08:31.199 --> 00:08:35.519 holes in trees is when they are actually sitting on 141 00:08:35.720 --> 00:08:39.399 eggs or feeding babies that have hatched before the baby's fledge. 142 00:08:39.639 --> 00:08:42.360 So we don't have to worry about that nest, come fall, 143 00:08:42.480 --> 00:08:43.639 that abandoned nest. 144 00:08:44.039 --> 00:08:47.399 Right, if you find a nest in a tree in 145 00:08:47.440 --> 00:08:51.879 the fall, you know, anytime after about July or August, 146 00:08:52.120 --> 00:08:55.039 it's almost certainly not going to be in use. 147 00:08:55.799 --> 00:08:59.960 What is the how do you relate to people when 148 00:09:00.120 --> 00:09:03.080 coming to the store. What's the importance of backyard birds. 149 00:09:04.039 --> 00:09:08.960 Birds put a smile on people's face. They you know, 150 00:09:09.000 --> 00:09:10.879 they come in and they've got some big grin on 151 00:09:10.919 --> 00:09:12.840 their face. They say, oh, guess what I saw in 152 00:09:12.879 --> 00:09:15.720 my yard today. I saw a woodpecker at my bird feeder. 153 00:09:16.039 --> 00:09:19.679 I've never seen one before, and they're just so happy. 154 00:09:19.720 --> 00:09:20.799 It brings them joy. 155 00:09:21.679 --> 00:09:26.000 As a as a home designer, you wouldn't think that 156 00:09:26.600 --> 00:09:29.840 birds would be part of my purview, right you Like, 157 00:09:30.080 --> 00:09:32.200 you're supposed to be building houses and stuff like that. 158 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:37.320 But here's a reality something that that I've noticed that 159 00:09:37.639 --> 00:09:40.639 is well, it's it's something I've learned that's part of 160 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:46.440 a and I'm very grateful about this, a new surge 161 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:51.759 of what we call biophilic design inside the architectural community, 162 00:09:51.799 --> 00:09:54.559 and that is a love embracing the love of nature, 163 00:09:54.600 --> 00:09:59.720 embracing nature bringing it inside, at least visually and audibly. 164 00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:03.320 And one of the things that we've learned that for 165 00:10:03.399 --> 00:10:07.440 a human being, when it comes to distressing a human being, 166 00:10:07.960 --> 00:10:14.360 there is literally nothing more distressing audibly than the sound 167 00:10:14.639 --> 00:10:18.000 of bird song. And they've run these studies now up 168 00:10:18.039 --> 00:10:22.919 against you know, kind of like that relaxation tonal stuff 169 00:10:22.960 --> 00:10:25.159 that you can get on an app, which is lovely 170 00:10:25.679 --> 00:10:29.399 or total silence. You know, everybody I think understands that 171 00:10:29.799 --> 00:10:33.519 the noise of the city is literally city noise, urban noise, 172 00:10:33.559 --> 00:10:37.840 traffic noise. It is literally it translates into the human 173 00:10:37.879 --> 00:10:41.200 psyche as stress. There's no avoiding that. Right. People may love, 174 00:10:41.440 --> 00:10:43.360 they say, I love living in the city, but the 175 00:10:43.399 --> 00:10:46.440 fact of the matter is that noise is stress. I 176 00:10:46.440 --> 00:10:51.080 mean for everybody, city dwellers and country dwellers alike. But 177 00:10:51.279 --> 00:10:56.840 when when we sit there and actually monitor brain wave 178 00:10:56.879 --> 00:11:01.320 response and stress levels, cortisol levels. Okay, so what's the 179 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:05.679 alternative to this silence? Is that the most relaxing thing? 180 00:11:06.360 --> 00:11:10.600 Is it this binaural music stuff that we you know, 181 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:12.879 the gray noise and the white noise that we've developed, 182 00:11:12.960 --> 00:11:15.960 or the blue noise or bird song and you and 183 00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:20.039 there's no competition between them. Studies have shown that bird's 184 00:11:20.080 --> 00:11:23.600 song relaxes. And I have a theory about this, well, 185 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:26.360 others have a theory about it, but I agree with it. 186 00:11:26.679 --> 00:11:29.960 And that is for all of this time, for millions 187 00:11:29.960 --> 00:11:35.759 of years, we've lived essentially an outdoor life, and birds 188 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:40.960 being so hyper sensitive about the presence of predators or 189 00:11:41.000 --> 00:11:47.440 threats or fire or whatever. Right that anytime there is 190 00:11:47.480 --> 00:11:53.000 a threat happening in nature, birds go silent because they 191 00:11:53.000 --> 00:11:56.399 don't they don't want to give off their location. Right, Okay, 192 00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:00.639 So there is something that even if you'd never realize that, 193 00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:04.039 if you don't even know that, there's something about waking 194 00:12:04.120 --> 00:12:07.039 up in the morning and hearing a yard full of 195 00:12:07.039 --> 00:12:10.559 birds just happily going about their business that, on some 196 00:12:11.399 --> 00:12:17.159 I don't know, evolutionary subconscious level tells our minds, Hey, 197 00:12:17.200 --> 00:12:22.559 everything's okay, everything is okay. That is just miraculous and wonderful. 198 00:12:22.600 --> 00:12:26.080 It really is. It really is. So birds song is 199 00:12:26.840 --> 00:12:29.399 something that we really need as human beings. 200 00:12:29.600 --> 00:12:35.720 Yeah. Yeah, the color of the birds is great. To watch, 201 00:12:35.840 --> 00:12:42.679 the sound of them singing, the movement, just the activity. 202 00:12:42.919 --> 00:12:46.519 It all plays an effect on our brains helps us 203 00:12:46.600 --> 00:12:48.799 to relax, take stress away. 204 00:12:49.799 --> 00:12:52.639 Awesome. Okay, so we're gonna take a break. When we 205 00:12:52.639 --> 00:12:54.879 come back, I want to talk to you about how 206 00:12:54.919 --> 00:12:58.759 do people get started? Just like, all right, I'm convinced 207 00:12:58.759 --> 00:13:01.600 now I need birds, and but I have not heard 208 00:13:01.639 --> 00:13:03.759 I have no idea what to do. And then we're 209 00:13:03.759 --> 00:13:05.879 also you and I need to talk about my current 210 00:13:05.919 --> 00:13:10.919 life list here, okay, my current count of birds. You're not. 211 00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:14.440 You are not. You're gonna laugh because yours is like 212 00:13:14.519 --> 00:13:17.000 four times as big. Anyway, all right, we are going 213 00:13:17.080 --> 00:13:20.159 to continue this talk with my very special guest, Richard 214 00:13:20.240 --> 00:13:23.919 armor Ding from wild Birds Unlimited. Can you hang on 215 00:13:23.960 --> 00:13:25.879 for another segment? Absolutely? All right. 216 00:13:27.039 --> 00:13:30.360 You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from 217 00:13:30.440 --> 00:13:31.919 KFI Am sixty. 218 00:13:34.159 --> 00:13:38.000 Dean Sharp the house whisper here with you on yet 219 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:43.919 another lovely spring Sunday morning, and today we are talking 220 00:13:43.919 --> 00:13:49.399 about life in your backyard, not just that new outdoor 221 00:13:49.519 --> 00:13:52.519 kitchen that you want, or the new hard escape or 222 00:13:52.519 --> 00:13:55.399 the new patio, but the real power of our backyard, 223 00:13:55.399 --> 00:13:59.679 and that is bringing life, landscape, nature back, bringing us 224 00:13:59.759 --> 00:14:02.960 much nature back. At every home, whether it's a human 225 00:14:02.960 --> 00:14:06.600 home or an animal home, displaces some other part of nature. 226 00:14:06.919 --> 00:14:10.279 If a gopher digs a tunnel underneath the field in 227 00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:13.600 the middle of a prairie, that gopher has displaced things, 228 00:14:13.720 --> 00:14:18.799 its life has displaced what was there previously. Humans displace nature. 229 00:14:18.840 --> 00:14:21.080 We just have to face that fact. Again. We don't 230 00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:23.879 have to feel overly guilty about it, but it is 231 00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:26.320 a reality that we should face. And if we are 232 00:14:26.360 --> 00:14:30.960 planning our homes well, then after we have our home 233 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:34.399 in place. We should do everything we can to bring 234 00:14:34.440 --> 00:14:39.399 as much nature back into that zone as possible so 235 00:14:39.519 --> 00:14:44.399 that we have this thriving ecology around us. And there 236 00:14:44.440 --> 00:14:49.120 are one hundred different reasons why it is good for 237 00:14:49.320 --> 00:14:52.399 us to have that nature close at hand. And we're 238 00:14:52.399 --> 00:14:56.840 talking about that today specifically, right now, we're talking about birds, 239 00:14:57.080 --> 00:15:00.440 backyard birds with my very special in studio guest, Richard 240 00:15:00.559 --> 00:15:04.480 Armor Dang, owner of wild Birds Unlimited out here in 241 00:15:04.600 --> 00:15:10.320 Thousand Oaks. Richard, getting started, you, of all people, are 242 00:15:10.679 --> 00:15:13.559 imminently qualified to tell us is because that's what wild 243 00:15:13.679 --> 00:15:17.759 Bird's Unlimited is all about, getting people started. So let's 244 00:15:17.799 --> 00:15:21.240 say we got no clue, but we've decided, you know, 245 00:15:21.720 --> 00:15:24.480 all right, deans convinced me I need birds in my yard. 246 00:15:24.519 --> 00:15:26.600 I don't have birds in my yard. What do I do? 247 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:31.799 It's real simple to get started. You need food for 248 00:15:31.879 --> 00:15:34.159 the birds. Is gonna be the first thing you want 249 00:15:34.200 --> 00:15:37.279 to do to attract them into your yard. A simple 250 00:15:37.320 --> 00:15:42.440 little feeder with some bird seed in it, particularly sunflower seed. 251 00:15:43.360 --> 00:15:46.840 It's called black oil sunflower seed. Almost all of our 252 00:15:46.879 --> 00:15:51.279 backyard birds love to eat it. And it's real simple 253 00:15:51.879 --> 00:15:53.960 to get started. Do you hang up a feeder, you 254 00:15:54.000 --> 00:15:56.519 put some bird seed in it, wait a little while, 255 00:15:56.559 --> 00:15:57.759 and the birds will show up. 256 00:15:58.320 --> 00:16:03.440 Now, what about those people. I've already heard some folks say, Hey, 257 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:07.440 you know, I heard some guy talking about the fact 258 00:16:07.440 --> 00:16:13.120 that feeding birds in my backyard is disrupting their normal cycle, 259 00:16:13.639 --> 00:16:15.919 all of that kind of stuff, like we shouldn't be 260 00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:16.960 feeding birds. 261 00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:20.559 Well, birds when there is a bird feeder available, only 262 00:16:20.600 --> 00:16:24.159 get about one fifth of their diet from the bird feeder. 263 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:27.679 The rest of their diet comes from natural sources. So 264 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:30.840 if that feeder were to go empty for a period 265 00:16:30.919 --> 00:16:34.480 of time, they would not starve. They would just simp 266 00:16:35.200 --> 00:16:37.240 one of their other food sources. 267 00:16:37.279 --> 00:16:39.720 So we're not acting like drug dealers where we're making 268 00:16:39.799 --> 00:16:42.480 the birds dependent upon us, and it's supplemental. 269 00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:45.080 It is we're making their life a little bit easier, 270 00:16:46.519 --> 00:16:49.679 and we reap the benefit of that by being able 271 00:16:49.679 --> 00:16:52.440 to see them and hear them in our yard. So 272 00:16:52.519 --> 00:16:56.679 the birds enjoy it, they have a relatively easy meal, 273 00:16:57.200 --> 00:17:00.679 and we get the benefit of having them right there 274 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:01.360 in front of us. 275 00:17:01.600 --> 00:17:04.799 Okay, So now you talked about sunflower seeds, black oil, 276 00:17:04.839 --> 00:17:07.640 sunflower seeds as a kind of a universal just a 277 00:17:07.759 --> 00:17:12.960 great easy you know, I mean broad spectrum kind of food, 278 00:17:13.400 --> 00:17:17.319 but you guys sell very specific mixes to attract different 279 00:17:17.440 --> 00:17:18.599 kinds of birds. 280 00:17:19.119 --> 00:17:23.880 Yes, to some extent, there are specific birds that like 281 00:17:23.960 --> 00:17:27.920 to eat specific foods. There are some birds that are 282 00:17:28.279 --> 00:17:35.079 strictly insect eaters. Bluebirds, for example, almost entirely their entire 283 00:17:35.359 --> 00:17:40.279 diet is almost all insects, so they are unlikely to 284 00:17:40.319 --> 00:17:42.880 go for sunflower seed. But there are other things that 285 00:17:42.920 --> 00:17:45.359 you can put out that will attract these other kinds 286 00:17:45.359 --> 00:17:49.319 of birds. There are other kinds of birds that aren't 287 00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:53.039 particularly fond of sunflower seeds, so millet is another option. 288 00:17:54.160 --> 00:17:58.359 Peanuts are very popular with certain birds. So as you 289 00:17:58.400 --> 00:18:02.519 get more and more into it can expand the types 290 00:18:02.559 --> 00:18:05.279 of foods that you're putting out for birds and increase 291 00:18:05.400 --> 00:18:06.519 the variety. 292 00:18:06.079 --> 00:18:08.480 Of birds that you see in your yard. So by 293 00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:12.240 expanding that you can draw more in and different sizes 294 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:15.119 of birds as well. You know, we've got a woodpecker. 295 00:18:15.160 --> 00:18:19.039 We have two woodpecker feeders that we use that have 296 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:22.319 larger nuts and things like that. For the larger birds 297 00:18:22.359 --> 00:18:25.119 like blue jays and woodpeckers are very much attracted to 298 00:18:25.160 --> 00:18:27.559 that and they stay away from the smaller feeders, which 299 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:31.279 you know, the wrens and the sparrows and the finches 300 00:18:31.480 --> 00:18:35.839 just mob on a daily basis and it's great just 301 00:18:35.880 --> 00:18:39.440 to have everybody around, everybody around. And then there are 302 00:18:39.480 --> 00:18:41.839 plants that we've got, like we have a lot of 303 00:18:41.880 --> 00:18:46.279 sage in our backyard that the hummers, the hummingbirds love. Yes, Now, 304 00:18:46.279 --> 00:18:47.920 if you don't have those kinds of things, there are 305 00:18:48.000 --> 00:18:49.519 hummingbird feeders as well. 306 00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:55.920 Yeah, hummingbird feeders are another supplemental food. Hummingbirds get more 307 00:18:55.960 --> 00:19:00.000 than half of their diet from eating insects. They catch 308 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:02.960 little flying insects and that makes up about sixty percent 309 00:19:03.000 --> 00:19:06.920 of their diet. But they also like to eat nectar 310 00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:10.759 from flowers, which is essentially sugar water. So if you 311 00:19:10.880 --> 00:19:13.519 have a hummingbird feeder with sugar water in it, you 312 00:19:13.559 --> 00:19:16.960 can put that somewhere where you can attract the hummingbirds 313 00:19:17.079 --> 00:19:19.240 to someplace maybe where you can see them. 314 00:19:19.160 --> 00:19:23.839 A little bit easier. And why are hummingbird feeders always red? 315 00:19:24.680 --> 00:19:27.039 Well, most of the flowers that they like to eat 316 00:19:27.079 --> 00:19:31.400 from are red, and so they are just naturally attracted 317 00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:34.880 to the color red, and so hummingbird feeders have been 318 00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:37.240 made red to help to attract them. 319 00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:40.319 And do we know why hummingbirds are naturally attracted to 320 00:19:40.400 --> 00:19:43.119 red as opposed to just all the other flowers out there. 321 00:19:44.200 --> 00:19:46.720 I do, you do? I do? Tell me, I'm going 322 00:19:46.799 --> 00:19:50.000 to learn something. Okay, here's the thing, right, So, when 323 00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:53.599 it comes to nectar, who are the only other individuals 324 00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:57.240 that hummingbirds are competing with? Bees? Bees? Bees have an 325 00:19:57.240 --> 00:20:02.240 incredible span of of vision in their spectrum, but their 326 00:20:02.279 --> 00:20:07.359 spectrum of vision moves from our normal spectrum and slides 327 00:20:07.559 --> 00:20:11.759 far into the ultraviolet, the blue side of things. So 328 00:20:11.839 --> 00:20:15.279 bees see bright colors in certain flowers that you and 329 00:20:15.319 --> 00:20:17.880 I think are just drab and just normally fade in. 330 00:20:18.240 --> 00:20:25.480 But they don't. They don't see red. Red flowers are 331 00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:30.279 relatively meaningless to a bee. They are not out there flashing, hey, 332 00:20:30.680 --> 00:20:36.160 nectar source and I believe that somehow evolutionarily, hummingbirds who 333 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:39.559 get frustrated arriving at a flower to find out that 334 00:20:39.599 --> 00:20:44.640 the bees have already drained it, have gravitated towards because 335 00:20:44.640 --> 00:20:47.880 the hummingbirds can see into the red spectrum really well. 336 00:20:48.160 --> 00:20:51.319 So hummingbirds go for red flowers because they know that 337 00:20:51.359 --> 00:20:53.839 the bees haven't been there. That makes a lot of sense, 338 00:20:53.960 --> 00:20:57.799 and that's just again, just amazing right, just amazing. All right, 339 00:20:57.880 --> 00:20:59.759 we're going to take a break. Can you stay for 340 00:21:00.079 --> 00:21:02.720 one more with sure, We're gonna take a break, We're 341 00:21:02.759 --> 00:21:05.599 gonna come back. We're gonna talk about my Feeble Life list, 342 00:21:05.640 --> 00:21:09.839 which will maybe impress a lot of people, but the 343 00:21:10.680 --> 00:21:14.160 goal is to get people excited about that. And then 344 00:21:14.200 --> 00:21:16.880 also when it comes to the feeders, let's talk about 345 00:21:16.920 --> 00:21:23.960 the prop the problematic practicality, Squirrels, rats, rodents, the things 346 00:21:23.960 --> 00:21:27.000 that also get attracted around bird feeders that we don't 347 00:21:27.039 --> 00:21:30.319 necessarily want an abundance of in our yard. So you 348 00:21:30.359 --> 00:21:32.400 can hang on, I can all right. 349 00:21:33.279 --> 00:21:36.559 You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from 350 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:38.200 KFI AM six forty. 351 00:21:41.599 --> 00:21:44.160 Always a privilege and a pleasure to be with you 352 00:21:44.319 --> 00:21:49.200 on a Sunday morning, especially a beautiful spring Sunday morning. 353 00:21:49.240 --> 00:21:51.119 And I say that in all seriousness. It doesn't matter 354 00:21:51.119 --> 00:21:53.359 whether it's cloudy or rainy or sunny where you are. 355 00:21:53.440 --> 00:21:56.519 Springtime is just a beautiful time of year. Southern California 356 00:21:56.559 --> 00:21:59.279 is actually having here's an unexpected thing. We are having 357 00:21:59.359 --> 00:22:04.359 a full blown traditional spring. There are days in which 358 00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:08.000 there is sunshine and warmth and water falling from the 359 00:22:08.000 --> 00:22:11.119 sky and clouds all in the same day. That is 360 00:22:11.240 --> 00:22:14.720 called spring everywhere else in the world, and we are 361 00:22:14.759 --> 00:22:17.880 having it. And so we're talking about the benefits of spring, 362 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:21.279 what's happening in spring around us, especially at our homes, 363 00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:24.960 in our backyards, and how to maximize the life that 364 00:22:25.079 --> 00:22:28.920 is happening there. We're talking about birds right now, backyard 365 00:22:28.920 --> 00:22:32.240 birds with my very special guest, Richard Armording from wild 366 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:34.960 Birds Unlimited. He's the owner operator of the wild Birds 367 00:22:35.039 --> 00:22:38.680 Unlimited out here in Thousand Oaks. Okay, so we've talked 368 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:43.000 about getting started, let's talk about the problems that people 369 00:22:43.039 --> 00:22:45.599 bring up. I put a bird feeder in my backyard 370 00:22:45.680 --> 00:22:48.160 and the next thing, you know, it was covered. You know, 371 00:22:48.319 --> 00:22:52.039 we had rats everywhere, or squirrels were stealing all the food, 372 00:22:52.720 --> 00:22:54.240 and so I gave up. 373 00:22:54.960 --> 00:22:58.319 Yeah, those are real common issues that people bring up. 374 00:22:58.759 --> 00:23:02.279 They come in the store, their fresh straded. There are 375 00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:09.920 some solutions. Squirrels are a challenge because they are very clever, 376 00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:14.359 they're very agile, they are very tenacious. They don't give 377 00:23:14.440 --> 00:23:17.680 up easily. But there are ways that you can feed 378 00:23:17.680 --> 00:23:22.559 the birds without feeding the squirrels. Rats are insidious in 379 00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:26.000 southern California. They're all over the place. If there is 380 00:23:26.079 --> 00:23:28.640 a lot of bird food that gets dumped on the ground, 381 00:23:28.839 --> 00:23:32.400 they're going to find it. But there are some solutions 382 00:23:32.440 --> 00:23:35.359 to that too, to keep the amount of food that 383 00:23:35.480 --> 00:23:38.079 goes onto the ground out of very minimum. 384 00:23:38.160 --> 00:23:40.440 Okay, so let's talk about the rats first. Because the rats, 385 00:23:40.680 --> 00:23:44.519 rats and mice are they're not as athletic as squirrels. No, 386 00:23:44.720 --> 00:23:48.720 squirrels are like super I mean, they are incredible. We 387 00:23:48.839 --> 00:23:51.359 have just so everybody knows. You know, of course, we 388 00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:54.640 have squirrels around here, and we've taken all the steps 389 00:23:54.680 --> 00:24:00.519 that you're about to hear Richard describe, and still one squirrel, 390 00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:06.480 one squirrel has figured out how to how to break through, 391 00:24:06.680 --> 00:24:09.920 and still and I'll have to describe to you how 392 00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:13.839 how she gets over to the feeder, at which point 393 00:24:13.920 --> 00:24:16.839 Tina and I are like, you know what, buddy, have it, 394 00:24:16.960 --> 00:24:19.920 have at it. You have earned it. You know, he's 395 00:24:19.920 --> 00:24:24.319 not depleting the supply that bad. And we're like, we're 396 00:24:24.359 --> 00:24:27.000 proud of you. We're so proud that you have gotten 397 00:24:27.079 --> 00:24:29.880 through all of these hurdles, and so you deserve every 398 00:24:29.920 --> 00:24:34.079 little seed you get there. But generally speaking, they all work. 399 00:24:34.119 --> 00:24:37.160 But let's talk about rats first, because rats have certain limitations. 400 00:24:37.240 --> 00:24:40.519 Rats can't jump four feet vertically in the air or 401 00:24:40.599 --> 00:24:44.720