Ralph's Feeder

Ralph was a friend of mine: and of other photographers, mechanics, hunters, politicians and shopkeepers. Back in the 1970s and 80s Ralph knew more about Pennsylvania’s elk than any other human, even wildlife biologists. It was Ralph who first introduced me to the elk herd in the mid-1970s when there were only a handful of elk (perhaps fewer than 60) in Pennsylvania. Over the years he wrote three books on the elk herd, a history of Elk County and a history of the 50,000 acre Quehanna Wild Area he was also featured in a film about the elk herd. Ralph died in 2015 when he was 87, Pennsylvania's elk lost a champion and we lost a special person and true friend.

But I digress, this post was meant to be about a bird feeder that I first saw hanging in an old apple tree in Ralph’s yard in Dent’s Run. While it vaguely resembles several other designs, I’ve never seen another like it. Did Ralph come up with the design or did he see it somewhere? I don’t know.

I like the simplicity of this feeder and the fact that it can be made of scrap wood by anyone with a minimal collection of tools. The chickadees, titmice and, especially, nuthatches seem to favor Ralph’s design.

 

The first “Ralph’s feeder” that I made was small and made from a salvaged white pine board. The latest, which was made from scrap plywood, is large and holds about a gallon of sunflower seeds – hopefully enough to last about a week while we’re on a trip –

The dimensions of the largest –

The slanted sides are made from ¼ inch hardware cloth (galvanized wire mesh), the feeders hang from a hook made from a wire coathanger that passes through both the top and bottom of the feeder where it’s bent at a 90° angle. The lid is held in place by two cleats that limit its movement. Filling is done by lifting the lid and temporarily turning it sideways.

These feeders are by no means squirrel proof or even squirrel resistant, but they’re inexpensive and easy to make.