We have noticed a decline in the number of waterfowl, but finally our feeders are busy tho I don't seem to be filling them as often.....the Canadian geese have finally shown up but not in the numbers in the past. Pat in Montross. In a message dated 1/12/2012 10:20:06 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, mfullerton1@xxxxxxxxxxx writes: This note is not about any spectacular sightings, truly unusual visitors, or long extinct dactyls. Quite the opposite. Our neighborhood, in the far North edge of Kilmarnock, has not seen birds at our feeders since hurricane Irene in August 2011. We see 3 or 4 Crows occasionally, or a couple of Turkey Buzzards looking for a meal, but no Robbins, House Finches, Gold Finches, White Throats, Chipping Sparrows, Mourning Doves.Juncos, Woodpeckers, or any of the others which used to keep us broke eating cakes of suet and bags of seed per day. Has anyone else had a similar experience or know why this may have happened? There has been one benefit from all of this. Without the birds singing and fluttering around the feeders, and showing the squirrels where the food is, the squirrels have also been absent even though feeders have been full. This has saved some serious damage repair and general maintenance on the feeders. I'll have to admit that we are down to maintaining a single feeder in face of this long avian drought. Mark and Connie Fullerton