I have discovered bluebird candy. Well, not actually candy, but my little blue feathered friends eat it like a bag of Tootsie Rolls and Reese’s Cups on a Halloween night.
My daughter, Angelin, knowing that I love bluebirds, gave me a bag of Birdacious Bark Butter Bits for Christmas. At first skeptical, I put a cupful in my open end, glass bowl bird feeder and the blues were on it like white on rice. They still visit my suet feeder and the sunflower hearts feeder, but they practically camp out near the Butter Bits.
A product of Wild Birds Unlimited, this nugget-sized suet is steeped in hot pepper, which keeps the squirrels at bay. The stuff is so hot, the squirrels won’t even hop around on that side of the yard.
The bird-healthy ingredients include corn, roasted peanuts, rendered beef suet, oats, red pepper, and calcium carbonate.
Jim Carpenter, the creator, says his formula will attract over 140 different species of birds – and especially bluebirds.
I presently have 4 bluebirds that make regular visits. They wait their turn as each one flies to the bowl, selects exactly one nugget, then flits up to a nearby branch while the others fly in. It’s an easy-to-eat treat that keeps the birds warm inside and healthy on the outside.
So far – knock on wood – the other birds have not discovered my bluebird candy, and I’m hopeful that when the grackles arrive, they will be too large to squeeze inside the bowl feeder. In the meantime, the bluebirds surely love their candy.