Avoid birdcicles: Heated birdbaths may tempt birds to bathe when it’s too cold.

Q: Good or bad: I maintain a heated birdbath in winter, and have read that birds shouldn’t take baths in it on really cold days. My feeling is that birds have enough sense not to immerse themselves in water when they could freeze to death, but what do you think?

A: This is a somewhat controversial topic among those who maintain heated birdbaths in winter. Some would agree with you, feeling that birds will use good sense in choosing whether to bathe on really cold days. But many others, myself included, regard heated birdbaths on days when it’s below about 20 degrees as dangerous to birds. They regard liquid water as a signal that it’s warm enough to have a bath. But we deceive them when we provide open water in otherwise icy conditions, and there are reports of birds bathing in the brutal cold, then succumbing to exposure as their feathers ice up. On the coldest days, I advise placing a board, tree branch or other barrier across the birdbath basin to block much of the surface, so birds can drink but not bathe.

Q: What kind of nest does a great horned owl build?

A: Good question, and you may be surprised to learn that great horned owls (and most other owl species) don’t build nests at all. Instead, they adopt an old nest built by a hawk or squirrel, or use a broken area in a tree to raise their family. (This has always intrigued me, and I’ve wondered why owls aren’t nest builders, but I’ve never found an answer, even after asking the experts. It seems limiting to have to rely on other species, or windstorm damage to trees, to create nesting sites.) To locate great horned owl nests, check the tree canopy for large structures or in broken trunks, for those characteristic “ears” sticking up. And listen for owls hooting to each other at night to guide the way. Which owls do build nests? In our region, both the snowy owl and short-eared owl pull together vegetation to make a bowl for their eggs on the ground.

Q: Cooper’s hawks fly into my backyard and seem to snag juncos more often than other birds, like house sparrows. Do you think our city birds are more alert to hawks than juncos?

A: Cooper’s hawks prey on smaller birds, as you’ve noticed, and several studies indicate that European starlings, a nonnative species, make up a significant portion of their diet. In my own neighborhood, I’ve observed Cooper’s hawks snatching cardinals, flickers, chickadees and blue jays, and signs (piles of feathers in the backyard) indicating that they catch juncos, woodpeckers and robins, as well. Hawks have greater success with young birds that haven’t yet fully developed their survival skills. Juncos have another handicap in that they’re migrants, visiting our area only in winter, so early in the season they may lack a sense of where to hide for safety. Sparrows seem to be more wary and often feed in large groups, so can warn each other if danger approaches.

Q: I’m confused about a bird that’s been frequenting our backyard. It looks like a blackbird, in some ways, but I can’t find it in my bird guide. What do you think?

A: The bird in the photo you sent confuses many people because it looks so different at different times of the year. It’s a European starling in its winter coat, with pale tips on all its outer feathers. This gives starlings a speckled look and if you’re not used to seeing starlings in winter, this can be startling. By spring, those pale tips will have worn off, and starlings will again look like the iridescent black birds we’re used to seeing.

Q: I heard there’s a group that organizes outings for bird-watchers with disabilities. I use a wheelchair to get around and wonder if I can join.

A: It sounds like you’re thinking of Birdability, a national nonprofit that is working to make birding accessible for people of all abilities. There’s a crowd-sourced Birdability Map (a global resource that lists accessible locations), and both the St. Paul and Minneapolis bird organizations (St. Paul Bird Alliance, Land of Lakes Bird Alliance), both formerly Audubon chapters, are designing outings that consider a range of abilities for 2025. Add in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge’s programs, Three Rivers Park District’s and the Minnesota DNR, which has track chairs at 13 locations (including Fort Snelling) that can be checked out to explore rugged terrain. Visit these websites in spring for listings of accessible events in 2025 (landoflakesbirdalliance.org, stpaulbirdalliance.org). Also, Mark Paller, Birdability’s local representative, is open to being contacted (palle001@umn.edu).

Q: Every year I like to make homemade suet cakes for birds, and every year I lose the recipe before winter. Can you help?

A: There are many recipes online for making “bird puddings” for our backyard visitors, including this one:

Here’s one for a deluxe mixture:

1 ½ cups sunflower seed chips

1 ½ cups chopped nuts

1 ½ cups quick oats

1 ½ cups cornmeal

½ cup sugar

1 cup butter or lard

1 cup peanut butter

Mix dry ingredients (chips, nuts, oats, cornmeal, sugar) and set aside. Melt butter or lard together with the peanut butter, stirring until combined. Pour melted mix into dry mix and stir until combined. Press into baking pans, ice cube trays or whatever fits your suet feeder. Freeze for 2 hours, then fill feeders, and refreeze the rest. (This is deluxe stuff, so you might want to portion it out slowly.)

Note to readers: After a recent Q&A about whether bird species communicate with one another, a reader sent this fascinating tale:

“About 20 years ago, my son and I were camped at a lake near Ely, watching a pair of loons with chicks cruising along. A pair of bald eagles arrived and took up a perch in a tall pine overlooking the lake. They sat there a bit, making the loons quite nervous. One loon, with the chicks on her back, disappeared into a marshy area. One eagle flew off, leaving the other watching from the tree. It was unlikely a fish (the lake has large trout) would come near the surface in that heat. After a bit, a loon swam out and stopped below the tall pine. It screeched in a good imitation of “eagle.” The eagle screeched back. They continued like this for about 10 minutes. The loon dove near a deep pool and the eagle swooped down over the pool and grabbed a hefty trout and took it up to its perch in the pine.

It looked to us like a negotiation, where the loon promised the eagle a fish if the eagle promised to leave them alone. Of course, that is anthropomorphizing the situation, which might have been purely coincidence. But it impressed me that the loon could make eagle-sounding screeches that resulted in this seemingly cooperative event.”

St. Paul resident Val Cunningham, who volunteers with bird organizations and writes about nature for local, regional and national newspapers and magazines, can be reached at valwrites@comcast.net.