Welcome to
"Boulder Backyards"
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bird watchers (that's us)
Wild Bird Center Saturday Walks:
From 7:30 am (promptly)
to 9:45 am (approximately)
Every Saturday year-round.
Every last Saturday of the month we travel further afield than normal
and return a little later.
Call for more info: 303-442-1322
Birdwalks
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Wild Bird Center
of Boulder
Quick Links
Xcel Energy BirdCams
One fun way to participate in the lives of local birds is by viewing Xcel Energy's
Web Cams
owl cam
eagle cam
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Robin Cam by Dan & Mary Dietrich
Two of our customers, Dan and Marty Dietrich in Firestone, have set up a web cam on a robin nest at their home. If you would like to check in with their robins go to: www.esysdev.com/robincam
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Nature Photography
by
Wendy Marie Stuart
"Eagle's Quest" Golden Eagle
Visit our store to see a gallery of Wendy's matted and framed prints
and greeting cards for all occasions or
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Photo Credits
"Sandstone" by Steve Frye
"Robin Cam" by Dan & Mary Dietrich
"Eagle's Quest" Golden Eagle by Wendy Marie Stuart
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Thank you!
on our
20th Anniversary
from all of us at YOUR
Wild Bird Center! We couldn't have done this without you! Twenty years is a long time in anyone's book and we owe our success to you -- our customers, compatriots, fellow birders, and friends. A hearty thank you to you all!
Steve, Wendy, Marlene, & Bill
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Contact Info:
Steve Frye, Owner
Wild Bird Center Boulder
1641-28th Street
Boulder, CO 80301
(303) 442-1322
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Reflections on 20 Years: "Only in Retail!"
My High School friend always used to say 'the masses are asses' when referring to the general public. There are times in retail when you have to agree with that statement, but mostly we have wonderful customers, and they are usually happy to be in the store. I feel blessed in that regard. And it is always a relief when customers rise above a bad situation to show that they are not part of the 'assses'. (Excuse me)
On occasion, I have had my peaceful retail life interrupted by panic, worry, and dread. One of my most memorable interruptions happened at the old store location on Pearl Street. That was back in the days of being a sole proprietor (i.e. it was a one man show). Business tends to come in waves when you are working in the store. You can have a line at the counter, others who have questions, the phone is ringing, and the UPS Driver is bringing in a delivery all at once. A half hour later, you're looking at your watch wondering where everyone is.
I was excited to find our space on Pearl Street. It had been a store previously and some of the fixtures were still there. For those of you  who didn't know the old store, it was an old building at 826 Pearl that had many rooms. It was built by Charles Fry (no relation that I know of), a jeweler in town in the late 19th century. It had many features that make houses of that era so attractive like lots of wood trim, high ceilings, wood floors, and double hung windows. In the first room where the register was, the previous store had left some large particle board shelving units attached to the plaster walls. They were well made and painted so I used them for display and inventory.
One morning I was working and dealing with a 'wave' of customers. Also, my Bushnell Representative, Dick Bracken, was in showing some new binoculars, and Millie Miller and Cindi Nelson, long time customers, friends, and authors and illustrators of many wonderful field guides published by Johnson Books, were there for a visit. The phone rang, so I went in behind my counter to answer it as I looked out on all the hustle-bustle in the store. I can't remember what I was explaining on the phone, but it was involved and I had been on the phone for a couple of minutes. It's always frustrating to me as a retailer to be on the phone when someone leaves the store. I'm always worried that they left because they were not being served properly. I know that is usually not the case, but it always bugs me. A couple was just on their way out so I excused myself and blurted out 'thank you' as they were walking out the door, then I returned to my phone conversation.
As the couple left the store, the door closed a little hard. That's when all the action started. One of those large and heavy shelving units came off the wall. It hit the tall baseboard on the way down and was launched forward into the room. It hit Dick full force on the back laying him out across the register in front of me. The shelf was now pinning him to the counter. On top of the shelf was a large fish bowl (filled with water) that had some dieffenbachia growing. The bowl took the dive off the top of the shelf and blew apart in Dick's open brief case filling it with water and glass shards. On its way down, the shelving unit also smashed into Millie's hip, ripping her t-shirt and breaking the skin on her hip. At first, I didn't see Millie get hit. I just saw Dick hurled toward me.
On the phone, the person I was talking to could hear the loud crash and my exclamation 'Oh my Gosh!' She asked if everything was alright and told her the bookcase just fell off the wall and smashed someone. I remember her saying 'you have a lot on your plate right now so I'll call back'. I thanked her and hung up the phone. I rushed around to the other side of the counter to lift the shelf off Dick. He was shaken, but the shelf had hit him so squarely that he was spared any major injury. After I helped Dick up, I saw Millie doing what my kids and I call the 'owie' dance. She was hopping and limping in circles as she uttered phrases like 'ooh, ow. Ooh'.
As I approached Millie she looked at me and said 'Oh Steve, I'm so glad it was me. I'm so glad it happened to me'. I told her 'well Millie, I'm not really glad it was you'. Of course, what she meant was that she would not sue me or make a big deal out of getting hurt in my store. It was an immediate and gracious act from someone in pain. Sorry Millie and thank you.
I can't really remember what happened after the initial trauma and commotion. I remember Dick pouring water out of his brief case and leaving, and I remember Millie limping away and saying she would return in few days, which she did. I gave her a new t-shirt as a feeble gesture of atonement to replace the one torn by the shelf.
I will always remember that crazy day in my life as a retailer and I know all the others involved do too. We still see Millie and Cindi, and Dick Bracken is still my Bushnell rep. We all share that special bond of those who endure a frightening event together, and I remain ever thankful for great customers and for escaping what could have been a much worse scenario.
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Mention CODE WBC0612. Call (303) 442-1322 or bring in to redeem. Some restrictions may apply. Not valid in combination with other promotions. Expiration date: 7/3/09.
----- Coupon ----- Coupon ----- Coupon -----
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| End of Month Birding
Summer Morning at Sandstone Ranch
June 27, 2009, 7:30am to 11:00am
Come see the new families of birds at Sandstone Ranch, a great plains riparian habitat. With all the moisture lately, Sandstone should be beautiful. Carpool from the store leaving promptly at 7:30 or meet us at Sandstone east of Longmont at about 7:50. Map to Sandstone Ranch. For more questions call the Wild Bird Center at 303-442-1322. 
sandstone |
Ask Steve
Q: Why are cowbirds so mean?
A: Mean is a loaded word in biological terms. What is "mean" to one is survival for another, or even clever or necessary. Cowbirds are nest parasites, in other words, they lay their eggs in other birds' nests for them to raise instead of doing it themselves. That brings up issues of sloth for us non-avian beings.
Cowbirds evolved this strategy of nest parasitism out of necessity. Historically, they ranged primarily in the Great Plains feeding on the insects kicked up by heards of bison. Their first common name was buffalo bird. When you depend on the travelling bison for food, it's very hard to stay put for a month while you nest. So the cowbirds (buffalo birds) developed the strategy of nest parasitism so they could produce progeny and still keep moving to stay alive.
What people find particularly mean about this strategy is that the host birds often end up raising only one cowbird chick and their other eggs or nestlings don't survive. People also get upset because a female cowbird lays up to 40 eggs in one season. However, this does not mean that those 40 eggs are successful. Timing is crucial for the cowbirds to be successful in having their egg hatch. In fact, only about 4 percent of cowbird eggs hatch and are raised to fledging.
brown-headed cowbird
Interestingly, the prairie birds that cowbirds evolved with often have strategies for battling cowbird parasitism. By rejecting the cowbird eggs and pushing them out or by building a new nest and relaying eggs, many prairie birds have avoided parasitism. Cowbirds have responded by avoiding certain species as hosts. As the landscape of North America has changed so dramatically in the last few hundred years, cowbirds have expanded their range and are now not dependant on bison for survival. They also are parasitizing species which have not yet evolved strategies against the cowbird. These defenses will eventually evolve, followed by the cowbirds adapting a new angle on nest parasitism. Evolution is nothing if not an arms race. For more information from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Brown-headed Cowbird. |
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Wild Bird Center of Boulder
Catalog Web Site
We have been working hard to launch a catalog web site for the Boulder Store. We aren't quite finished getting it all together, but we invite you to check it out at www.wbcboulder.com. For all you locals who get seed delivered, you can use the site to figure out an order and delivery charges. Feel free to email us with your product questions.
Click Here To View Our New Product Catalog!
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