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@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks, and sorry to hear that. I’ve once found a hummingbird in torpor hanging upside down off my feeder; it was the strangest thing. I didn’t see it the next morning so I was left assuming it was fine.

@BackyardBiologyBoys Hanging upside-down...yes if I recall correctly the anatomy/physiology of bird feet is such that when they relax their feet the toes, or talons in raptors, will close shut. It may roost upside-down, perhaps, to better avoid predation while roosting or to sway in the wind or just because hummingbird feet are rather weak compared to other bird families...just a hypothesis I don't know...the two dead anna's hummingbirds I found were on the ground.

Yes! Fun indeed and a staircase of pools, the biggest of which I dove it. It’s pretty deep! The burn was several years back, and the shrub understory has definitely come back nicely with several wildflowers as well. I did catch a sight of a few birds but didn’t focus much attention and then this trip. It would probably be fun and fruitful going back with them as the focus. Cheers!

Glad to hear that and thank you for sharing. It fills my soul up, and all the wildlife seems to like it as well.

@@Xpedition_Edge thanks, glad you like it! And if you can laugh at yourself, you’ll always have a good supply of material… case in point, me taking a dunk in the river.

@@visualpoetry3d thanks very much for your kind comment. Cheers!

Thank you for the nice comment!

@@hvn03 thanks very much for your kind and encouraging comment. That’s awesome that you will be starting a career in education…best of luck in your endeavors! Also, regarding your summers, many seasonal and volunteer positions are available that you might find rewarding. Some of my best memories were conducting field work as a volunteer or seasonal. If you haven’t already explored the field, search USA Jobs or local state or provincial employment sites. Usually hiring managers will be advertising or interviewing those positions for the summer in late winter/early spring; so keep an eye out. Cheers!

@@inorganicjoe awesome, thanks for sharing. I’ve read ‘My First Summer in the Sierra’ and I’m currently reading ‘The Wild Muir’ to my boys, which is a bit more exciting because it showcases 22 of his more famous adventures. What about yourself? Do you have a favorite you’d recommend?

@@Biodiversity-Institute yes, the quail are very numerous. I found it interesting watching the maneuver wave/reaction of the juvenile quail while the adults seemed unfazed by some stimuli. And, the deer under the deck was strange too! That’s since stopped; however, I think at the time is was a relic of the house being vacant for a time before us moving in and perhaps that area being cooler in temperature? It seemed to enjoy spending some hours down there before making its way through the apple orchard. It caught my eye, so I was curious to see what it was doing under the deck. I’ve only caught the bachelors one other time but figured I’d be seeing some more of them this fall. Nothing as of yet.

Thanks! Ironically enough, for all the times I've driven by it, I've never done Lambert. But we did just climb Pothole Dome while driving to the eastside a couple weeks back. I'll hopefully have a video for the eastside trip in a few weeks. Sentinel Dome is very kid friendly and if you want a little longer hike you can aways tack on Taft Point.

@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks very much for the good advice. I’m mostly just having fun with all this and the boys. Hopefully they are learning something and we are all creating fun memories together. So at the very least, these videos will be memorialized as long as TH-cam is around to look back at. As for the camera traps, yes those have all been organic; however, I still like your idea of a baited trap for the flying squirrel. As I don’t think I’ll ever be lucky enough to catch those just by chance. As I built the “bird sanctuary”, I have water trays out near the feeders and it has been fun seeing all the wildlife use those. The first two weeks of fall were especially hot and I saw everything from black bear to gray fox getting a drink from them as well as all the usual suspects. Interestingly, although I captured many shots of coyote passing by, they never drank from them. So you were also very correct about them being suspicious. It makes me very happy to know you are getting some inspiration out of our content as well. Have a great time with your kids this weekend. As you know, they are only young once, so we should enthusiastically enjoy our time with them while we have them in our care. Enjoy!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys Yes...kids grow up way too fast...that's why we keep having more...we have six! It is amazing how much you are getting just by putting water out there but makes sense for California in the fall. Flying squirrels are more common than we might realize, they are just secretive. You may also get ringtail in your neck of the woods. I've done camera trap surveys in your area before and have gotten ringtail...and fisher! (You may have too much human disturbance in your immediate area for fisher.)

@@christophermunoz2491 thanks for expressing your concern and for the suggestion of a leash for the cats.

Haha, that’s great to hear. I’m glad you enjoyed it. This is one of my longer videos…I’m not sure how other TH-camrs do it, creating 30 minute videos.

@@amsyah95 Thanks very much for the positive response. If you haven’t seen our latest video, check it out here: th-cam.com/video/hwmaYJYbX8g/w-d-xo.htmlsi=MO3fCCjAKAJZkYvc. Glad to have you as part of the BBB community!

@@AMankstudio We very much appreciate your support! Thanks for the kind feedback. We’ll just keep on keeping on and see where it takes us. I know we’re having a lot of fun while doing it. Cheers!

@@Austins0asis thanks very much and for reaching out! I had a lot of fun making it, looking back trough all the footage. My goal is to do something similar after each season to capture changes on the property and to get better acquainted with all the wildlife. Cheers!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys that would be cool

@@virginiacurtis4431 thanks for reaching out. It can be found at any local hardware store. The type I used for the feeder was around $8 a roll and was intended for screen windows or doors. You’ll want to select the more ridged screen type for support of the seed and stay away from the more fabric style screen material. Also, I don’t recall if I made mention of it but a wider diameter mesh screen can be used for making mourning dove nest cones. You can find free designs for those and other nest boxes at the Cornell Lab website (nestwatch.org/learn/all-about-birdhouses/birds/mourning-dove/) or here (www.wildlifemiss.org/Education/PDF/2012%20FA%20Mourning%20Dove%20Nest%20Basket.pdf). The mesh for these is larger in diameter that what I used for the feeder which is very small. Hope that helps!

@@Biodiversity-Institute Ahh, I’d say not! I’ve only noticed deer and squirrels at my feeders, but I might need to take a closer watch. At our previous house, I’d periodically find a stash of seeds under our patio furniture which the mice would store. Now a days, I kind of enjoy just putting the feeders out in the fall and winter. Less work on my part and likely the best benefit to the birds. I do keep my hummingbird feeders up year round though.

Yes...that's probably a good idea in our case to.

@@BrianChoi-tz6sm Haha, thanks man! Spread the word. I still literally fist pump every new subscriber. If I ever get to a hundred thousand, i’m going to have a sore arm.

@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks for the suggestion. I’ll do just that. I have to admit, I had a hard time with making this episode. Trying to fill in the gaps with a storyline from their adventure. My oldest son is the reason we started a TH-cam channel in the first place, so it was fun seeing him take the lead. And I’ll be the first to admit, I’ve hijacked the channel a bit. But we are all learning from the experience and having fun while doing it.

@@Biodiversity-Institute that’s funny! My parents sometimes had mallards land in their pool. And I think even a cormorant once!

@@Biodiversity-Institute yeah, that was a fun one. The boys really enjoy exploring that pool and I think it’s a good safe spot for them as they begin to explore an interest in snorkeling. That’s what I’m really looking forward to as they get older. River snorkeling and hopefully if they still have an interest, pursuing their scuba certification. There still several years out, so in the meantime this has been a lot of fun!

@@Biodiversity-Institute Thanks for your nice comment and support. We have a lot of fun together as a family, and we are all benefiting from the ecology of the property. I think you are spot on about the ecotone. In the past we lived nearby, but 1,500 feet lower in elevation, and didn’t have any bear activity and a few different species of birds. Nothing rare or uncommon seen yet. It’s been interesting seeing the black bear activity pick up in the fall and I’m still hopeful to see a mountain lion on the camera trap. They seem to be through the area every six weeks or so but I’ve only seen tracks so far. Thanks again for your interest!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys Wouldn't be surprised if you got bobcat as well... a lot more common than people realize...also flying squirrels, they are also common, but secretive and nocturnal. When I have set up camera traps in my surveys, I will aim it at the base of tree and set up a baited station...the flying squirrels, they will come down from the top, climbing down the tree bole...they spend very little time on the ground. Depending on where you are exactly in the Sierra (sounds like central Sierra), you might also get fisher and pine martin (depending on how much human development you have around you). I've noticed that coyotes (very intelligent animals) are very shy around the camera traps (I think they think it is an actual trap, they are so heavily hunted/trapped by humans). Yes, I think for black bears, food starts to get a little scarce in the fall, so they are taking more exploratory excursions out of their typical home range (my guess). Have fun with the camera traps!

@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks, it’s been a lot of fun so far. I’m surprised too that I haven’t captured a bobcat. I’d see one or two of them a year at a past property in the foothills. So, imagine it’s only a matter of time. A marten or fisher would be amazing too, although I might be slightly lower in elevation than their typical occurrence, but I guess time will tell. A ringtail might be a good possibility and maybe a fly squirrel as well? I’ll definitely try out your suggestion method for baiting the fly squirrels, thanks for sharing that. And the coyotes have been fairly active. I’ve seen several on video and in person. The best was about a month ago when I saw one in the morning getting chased off by a doe. I guess it was getting a little too close to her fawn! But it was definitely an interesting sight to see.

@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks for the peer review. That’s great to have! And while I’m almost certain it’s a Dark-eyed Junco, you are absolutely correct in that it is indeed atypical. Which is a good reminder to me, if ever to make content like this again, I should always use typical songs. Otherwise it can be confusing or misleading. I’m going to pin your comment to the top so other viewers can see the discrepancy and look into it themselves. Thanks again for the support and possible correction. It’s very much appreciated!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys No prob. Enjoying your channel. I have six kids, took my two oldest boys with my on the Pacific Crest Trail studying bird diversity for 3.5 months this last spring/summer. I admire what you are doing with your boys by immersing them in nature/wildlife biology.

@@Biodiversity-Institute thank again for the very nice comments. I’m really hopeful to make all those dreams into a reality. I don’t want to get stuck in the dreamer phase without any positive beneficial actions, yet also don’t want to rush into anything ether that I later regret or worse, has an unintentional negative impact. If you have any suggestions or ideas, please let me know. Thanks again for joining in the community. I’ve really enjoyed your insights!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys I think I'm in a very similar phase as you, perhaps (mid-career, mid-life). I was an environmental science professor for 11 years at a small liberal arts college (no longer there now)...now starting up an environmental non-profit, and a TH-cam channel, with a vision of pursuing and leaning into my scholarship/research, which has been ongoing, on the Pacific Crest Trail, since my PhD research almost 20 years ago. At some point, we need to stop putting things on hold and pursue the vison. Just take it in steps (you are making great videos)...perhaps at some point we could collaborate as our channels grow (I've just started my channel, you are much further along than I am). I'm very knowledgeable of the ecology of your area, especially birds.

@@Biodiversity-Institute yes that would be great. I’ve only hiked the JMT portion of the PCT, and very much admired the PCTers we got to know along the way. Your work and channel sound very interesting! I’ll definitely check it out. My background since grad school has mainly focused in aquatic biology and fisheries so this has been a fun endeavor because it’s an area of interest I don’t professionally get to work in but have a personal interest in and enjoyment for the sheer fun of it. TH-cam has also been a creative outlet, in the script writing, video production, and learning curve for editing and TH-cam in general. I just hit my one year anniversary for the channel and can say it’s been fun, rewarding, and a lot of work. I’ve really enjoyed the process but it’s definitely difficult at times. Best of luck in your endeavors, and just keep plugging away at your content one video at a time; keeping a steady, realistic pace (like a marathon), and I imagine good results will follow.

@@inorganicjoe Thanks! That’s my best piece of equipment, besides an older iPhone and Canon Rebel T5i. It’s a GoPro Hero 12. I don’t have a need for a separate housing for it yet but they are waterproof to 33ft out of the box. For the sake of time, I don’t always upload videos in 4k, so the actual quality is probably better than what I have available on TH-cam. I’m pretty low budget, and don’t have any background on the video/production side of things but as an amateur, I’ve enjoyed using the GoPro for the majority of my footage.

@@maxagius8165 thanks for the suggestion! That would be fun initially catching them too. There is a local private hatchery that sells Florida strain Largemouth Bass fingerlings and Bluegill that might be worth looking into as well. Thanks again for reaching out.

@@IsabelRodriguez-nv2ue Thanks Isabel! That would be my prayer for you too, and anyone else reading this message for that matter.

@@JUMPTR00PER That’s my belief!

@@ryanbarretta3010 Thanks Ryan! It’s a pleasure to meet you, and very cool that we have a similar background. Unfortunately, yes, the fire danger is a real threat; and associated homeowners insurance rates are painfully high as a result. We have had at least one close friend move out of state because of fire concerns and associated stress from it. Pretty much during fire season, which seems to be ever longer, I’m holding my breath. It’s not a matter of if it will happen but when. And I think this is largely the reality for most of the rural west and mountain west areas because of climate change and years of fire suppression. Fire has always been an important part of a healthy landscape, so I’m excepting of it and happy to see more low intensity prescribed burns beings used in our management of forested areas. As far as our property, I just need to be diligent about keeping a defensible space, limbing up trees, and reduce fuel lows in the winter and spring with burn piles. I’m interested in trying to incorporate some fire ecology to our property, but don’t feel comfortable with any prescribed burn; maybe just experimenting with trimming down an area and spreading small amounts of extinguished leftover ash from our burn pile to perhaps fertilize a future wildflower meadow area. Doing a test plot to see if an area does better with the ash than an area without; a little experiment. I’m not totally sure, but I am always impressed and amazed by the wildflowers the form in a burn area. Let me know if you have any thoughts on that and thanks for your suggestion about the pond and wetlands overview. Cheers!

@@ClassAves-hv4ps I couldn’t agree more, and that’s half the reason why I like dogs better! But they found us. And the way I see it is we prevented 7 more community cats out on the landscape by taking them in, having them spayed and neutered, and rehoming them. The two we kept are indoor cats but the one is more adventurous and often joins us outside or escapes given the chance. Not to be graphic, but the reality is we are motivated to keep them indoors for the shared concerns you expressed for smaller wildlife and because outdoor pets don’t last long in these parts. They are part of the food web, per say, and are preyed upon by coyotes; which we have many. Thanks for sharing your comment and concern.

@@poojapawar4278 that is so awesome to hear. Thanks for your kind words and support! We are super excited to share new content from our wildlife homestead, but also plan to continue sharing our outdoor adventures. I was so bummed to have miss out on SF and Muir Woods but can’t wait for our next trip to your neck of the woods. Thanks again for being a part of our BBB community!

@@Austins0asis that’s a great idea! And maybe I could incorporate that into the design of a bee hotel or at least have them match and/or coordinate. I did a very low tech version of this in my past yard (th-cam.com/video/BVzZtUw-0G4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=MRAEylO9T-DzVzXy), but this would be more fun! Thanks for sharing your idea!

@@destinyhenderson-hudgins3776 I have native wildflower seed for roughly 2,000 sq ft of meadow ready to go in the ground after our first rain. I plan to prep and plant two areas this fall and we’ll see what comes of it in the spring. And a food forest, now that’s not something I was thinking of; just more of a conventional garden. I’ll have to ponder that idea some more. Thanks for your comment and great suggestions!

@@mattheweanfeldman Awesome, sounds like plan! I have 2,000 sq ft of native wildflower seed on its way. I plan to prep and plant two areas this fall and we’ll see what comes of it in the spring in a new video. Thanks for reaching out!

@@inorganicjoe thanks for reaching out, and that’s awesome to hear. I’m hoping to get the pond survey video out next weekend! And yes, the cats…They have always been a contentious issue in our family for just that reason. That’s why I keep them indoors for the most part. However, with the boys in and out of the house, it’s inevitable that they get out. But to your point, I’m very much mindful of that reality, and for the most part I’ve only witnessed a pocket gopher mortality. I’m excited for all the possibilities including the monarch way station. I’ve enjoyed seeing them overwinter in the Santa Cruz area each year. Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks again for your interest and insights!

Coyote (albeit not that unexpected)...when I was a wildlife biologist in Fresno. We had urban coyote. It's amazing how deep into the city they get...I hear the roam the streets of LA at night.

@@Biodiversity-Institute thanks for sharing!Yeah, they truly are remarkable and adapt well to urban environments. I believe it, I’ve seen them in the Long Beach area too.

@@blessyou285 Nice work and thanks for sharing. Try telling me kids that! I think just the thought of it and the intimidation factor play into the hype. They are happy to handle them all day long, however, with the method shown. I think just the idea of getting pinch scares them, but you are right, there is not much to it.

I've caught plenty only pinched by small ones

@@saramascarenas4361 that’s exciting to hear, and glad it’s only been the small ones. My kids love to go hunting for them and we have a lot of fun doing it together. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for joining in the fun, and for the kind comment!

@@shahryarali2778 Yes, a freshwater lobster (otherwise known as a crayfish 🤓).

@@bmfilmnut yes, I came to a similar conclusion. I did, however, get more bird diversity when using it. But it took extra care to keep it up; not over loading it with feed, just enough for a day, and keeping an eye on the forecast. I’d say, depending on your location, it’s good for summer (if you put out food) and fall. I plan to use mine just in fall. Thanks for reaching out and letting us know your thoughts and experiences with them.

@@drakemallard1486 LOL. Yeah, your right! Well hopefully your dragonflies get established first and eat all those mosquitoes 😜

Mosquitoes breed the best in stillwater if it's moving and has predators not many of them are going to live. They are extremely easy to pick off. They just sort of wiggle around in the water.

Well...sometimes I've left my swimming pool unattended long enough that I developed a nearly complete ecosystem with several trophic levels...mosquito larva, dragon flies, frogs, and even a Black Phoebe was regularly feeding on the insects by my pool.

@@Biodiversity-Institute haha, that’s too funny. You know I hear natural pools are a thing nowadays! Maybe consider a conversion🤣

@@still999 I can totally see why you would think that 😊. Thanks for sharing!!!

Great question! Much like dragonflies, damselflies legs are better suited for perching and catching prey than walking. Thanks for bringing this fun topic up.

@@daz3d935 Great question! A combination of the following: 1) Use Specialized Feeders: Designed for specific bird species (e.g. a mesh feeder for finch as opposed to a platform feeder), 2) Selective Feeding: Offer seeds like safflower, and 3) Feeder Placement: if possible place your feeder near shrubs or trees for cover as opposed to a large open space. Give these a try and see if they fix your issue. If not, then enjoy the birds you do attract… if you can’t beat them, join them). Best of luck!

@@BackyardBiologyBoys nice, thanks!

Thanks for your comment! I try to share information and tips that are broadly applicable, but I understand bird feeding practices vary globally. I'd love to hear about your experiences with birds in your area and try and make our content more inclusive! Or at least the comments section more informative

As a european, i dont think you know what that word means. This is an american making an educational video for americans, of course its us centric? Non-native species can destroy ecosystems all over the world

​@@stibba4286 literally, I don't know what the point of that comment was.