More than two dozen people came to Teatown Lake Reservation on Saturday morning to learn how to make holiday tree decorations that double as a food source for backyard wildlife.
Teatown's animal care supervisor and environmental educator Erin Baker showed children and their parents how to make pine cone bird feeders, fruit and popcorn garland, and animal-shaped toast critter feeders.
Children coated items in vegetable fat, then rolled them in bird seed while their parents attached string to hang them from trees. Small pieces of dried fruit and popcorn were strung on thin wire strips and tied off at the ends to make the edible garland.
Cookie cutters shaped like bats, dragonflies and other critters were pushed into pieces of bread which Baker than toasted in an oven before they also were smeared with vegetable fat and dipped into the bird seed.
