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For Kids
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Make Tempting Bird Treats
Recipes recommended by Julie L. for attracting a variety of birds.
To make freezer treat recipes, start by saving stale bread and cereal, mushy fruit, old nuts, and fatty meat scrapes such as chicken skin or fat trimmed from roasts. Separate these ingredients in individual containers in the freezer, then combine them according to the freezer treats recipes below.
Bluebird Mixture
2 parts from fruit bag
2 parts chopped suet
1 part from bread bag
1 part from meat bag
1/2 part cornmeal (optional)
Combine all ingredients. Spread on cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Refreeze until hard. Pour into resealable bags. Serve in an open tray feeder. This is also a favorite of mockingbirds and wrens.
Woodpecker Favorites
2 parts from bread bag
1 part from meat bag
1 part chopped suet
1/2 part from nut bagPour into large bowl and break apart chunks. Work ingredients until they are reasonably blended and the mixture clings together. The suet will melt as you work, providing the binding agent. But if the mixture seems too dry and crumbles, add some peanut or corn oil. Mold into balls or corncob size logs. Serve on a spiked feeder or put into a mesh bag and hang from a tree branch. This is also a favorite of chickadees, jays, nuthatches and titmice.
Fruity Mix
2 cups raisins
2 cups dried cherries
2 cups almonds, pecans walnuts or other nuts
1 cup prunes
1 cup peanuts
1 cup dried squash or melon seedsCoarsely chop fruits and nuts. Pour all the ingredients into a bucket or large bowl and stir to combine. Store leftover mix in a brown paper bag in a cool, dry place.
Note: To chop dried fruit more easily into beak-size bites, use a sharp knife and dip in cornmeal when fruit begins to stick to it.
Chickadee Delight
2 cups beef fat trimmings, ground or finely chopped
1 cup hulled sunflowers
1 cup pine nuts
1 cup peanuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup shelled almonds, hazelnuts, pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
Spread the chopped fat on a tray in a single, shallow layer and freeze until stiff. Break into small pieces with hands, and pour into a resalable plastic bag. Return to freezer and freeze overnight. Dump suet pieces into large bowl, and stir in other ingredients. Pour into open tray feeder in a shallow layer.
Links Just for Kids
Newsletter Published for Young Birders
The American Birding Association offers a special newsletter for young birders called A Bird's Eye View. The newsletter accepts art, poems, and other materials from youngsters about birds. Details about the newsletter, and events such as birding workshops are avialable at the web address: http://www.americanbirding.org; or call (719) 578-9203.
A scripted slide set written and produced by Robert E. (Skip) Richter, CEA-Horticulture, Travis County, Texas Agricultural Extension Service.
Missouri Department of Conservation:
Just For Kids. Leaf invaders shockwave game. Outside In-quarterly publication for young viewers. Missouri Frogs, Toads, Snakes.
National Wildlife Federation ~ Ranger Rick Kids Zone ~
Outdoor Stuff. Games. Reader's Corner. Cool Tours. Ranger Rick. Your Big Backyard. Wild Animal Baby.
Illinois Department of Natural Resources Kid Page:
Kids for Conservation. Careers in Conservation.
From Discovery.com-Bugs World. Everything you've ever wanted to know about (yucky) bugs is revealed here.
Amateur Entomologists' Society:
A club devoted to young people who find insects and other creepy crawlies interesting and fascinating.
Here you'll encounter a variety of habitats-places perfectly suited for particular plants and animals. These are important parts of the forest-and our environment. Think of them as pieces of a global jigsaw puzzle.
American Forest & Paper Association:
Kids/Educator recycling pages. All about trees, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. You can make a difference.