A photo of birds at my new feeder in my backyard

A little over a week ago I bought a deluxe birdfeeder from Wild Birds Unlimited in Seekonk, Massachusetts called The Eliminator because it is designed to keep squirrels from eating the seeds and nuts inside.

photo by Sharani

I have positioned it not too far from a window looking out from the living room into the backyard. I now have a new hobby. I can sit mesmerized for long stretches at a time with my camera poised for pictures and watch the birds and squirrels. The feeder perches are set so that the bigger birds cannot feed at it and the weight of the squirrels causes the openings to shut closed when the squirrels try to eat at them. It really works as you can see in these photos!

photo by Sharani

photo by Sharani

The squirrels have had to settle on eating whatever seed the birds drop and I splurged on a no-mess variety without any shells in order to keep the ground under the feeder relatively clean. Already the neighborhood cats have discovered this new safari as well and take great interest in the influx of birds to my yard.

I am truly delighted to mesh my interests in nature photography and birdwatching by owning a backyard feeder. Up close and personal beats the Discovery Channel on cable anytime although I hear that the new BBC dvd set called Planet Earth which I bought for the library where I work has some of the best nature footage on television ever. For now, I'll just keep my ringside seat on the couch and snap away.