Garden birds

**Liz** · 10-Sep-08, 13:32

I have hardly had any birds come to be fed for the past couple of months even though the feeders are full of lovely grub!

It is certainly saving me a lot of money but I miss them.

Has anyone else had a dearth(not sure if spelling is correct and canna be bothered checking the dictionary)of birds coming into their gardens?

**domino** · 10-Sep-08, 19:49

Apparenty there was an article in the Daily express, a few days ago. They reckoned that there was enough natural food around that the birds are sort of ignoring us. Certainly the variety of birds in my garden has reduced quite dramatically but I am sure they will be back later on

**Liz** · 10-Sep-08, 20:16

Cheers Domino.

I did wonder if they were getting natural food just now and this confirms it.

No doubt they will make up for it later!

**badger** · 21-Sep-08, 22:35

Mine are still emptying the feeders as fast as I can fill them, especially the nuts which is making me feel guilty. I used to think feeding all year round was the right thing but a discussion on the radio said we shouldn't feed in summer and especially not nuts. It was talking about whole nuts, which can apparently choke them, but I always use a feeder they have to peck and can't imagine any other way of doing it.

To feed or not to feed?

**Liz** · 21-Sep-08, 22:58

Well I am glad to say that the garden birds are back and enjoying all the food I put out for them.

Badger I have always fed the birds all year round (as advised by the RSPB)and feed peanuts in a mesh feeder. They become used to a regular food source and, as I have found in the past few weeks, if they don't need the food then they just won't come.

So carry on feeding the birds without feeding guilty.

**badger** · 22-Sep-08, 12:43

Thanks Liz. Little robin was sitting out there this morning complaining the feeders were empty so better go and fill them. Also have a little wren which I love. Wish they wouldn't bath in their drinking water though

.

**Anji** · 23-Sep-08, 16:56

I took my feeders in a couple of months ago to encourage the birds to enjoy the 'fruits of the fields' but our robin has also been hopping around the feeding station while casting questioning looks in my direction. I'd better get the feeders filled and back out in the very near future, or he'll be off to find a better home.

**singysmum** · 23-Sep-08, 21:18

When I first put my feeders out all the birds we got were either starlings or sparrows, but I didn't mind because at least they were coming into the garden. It's a new garden and has no mature trees at all so there never birds before. I loved watching them and a lot of them were new fledged and the adults were still feeding a lot of them with seed from the feeder. Suddenly they all disappeared and the feeder stayed full for days.
I noticed that the starlings are gathering on the wires around the local farms and so they must be over there now cleaning up after the combining.

I'm hoping they will come back again when the natural supplies run low and eventually I would hope to see other breeds here when they realised that there is a help yourself buffet permanently open!!
Oh, I nearly forgot - we did get a wheatear earlier in the year - lovely little bird.

**domino** · 24-Sep-08, 19:57

An increased number of coal tits in my garden this past week. The small flock of about 20 sparrows have been there all the time and it is nice to go into the garden and hear them all squabbling and to see them chasing one another, really lovely daft wee birds.

**Liz** · 24-Sep-08, 20:02

I agree with you domino as I adore sparrows.

We had a blue tit in our garden yesterday for the first time in ages along with the usual sparrows,starlings, finches and collared doves.

It is good to have them back even though my bank balance will suffer as a result!lol

The birds have come back but the hedgehogs we were feeding have disappeared just as we bought a big bag of food!
It is a bit early to be hibernating so hope nothing has happened to them.

**domino** · 26-Sep-08, 20:16

Sparrows still fighting away like mad. Coal tits increasing in number. Quite a few ring doves who are more aggressive than the sparrows. A few blackchocks and our resident robin overseeing everything. Starting to use a bit more bird food but I think it is because of the flying rats (feral pigeons) Sometimes wish i had a gun!!

**Anji** · 29-Oct-08, 17:27

On Autumnwatch last night, Bill Oddie said that birds hide away for a few weeks at the end of the summer, while they moult and grow their new feathers. This must be why our bird tables go through that quiet period.

**domino** · 29-Oct-08, 20:48

See a gradual increase in number of birds in the garden. Blackchocks are back. Have not seen them for quite a few weeks.

**dragonfly** · 29-Oct-08, 22:18

we've seen a few different birds at our feeders over the last couple of days, mainly tits, I've seen a blue tit a few times over the summer but esp today saw blue, great and coal tits along with goldfinches, siskins, sparrows, starlings, robins & wrens

well worth the cost of the food to see them all so closely

**Tilter** · 30-Oct-08, 13:07

Read this thread with interest because I was going to start a thread about my birdfeeding problems but this one's on topic.

Every year I put out feeders with fat balls or nuts. They sit there untouched until they go black and mouldy or the wind blows them away (I attach them to trees at other end of garden).

We're surrounded by fields (some crops, some set-aside, some hay/sileage/grazing), with both a pine forest and deciduous woodland within 5 minutes walking distance. We have two resident blackbird couples, robins and wrens actually in the garden. Outside the garden in hedges etc. I see goldfinch, coal and blue tits, chaffinch etc. There's also owls and raptors about. We have a cat but he never bothers birds and the resident birds are totally used to him. We've no close neighbours feeding birds.

OH does birdfeeding sometimes. For him this consists of making lard sandwiches from old bread which he puts in an old roasting pan on top of the coal bunker. (!!!) I have to admit that our residents come to this but never get a look in before crows and the odd scorrie come and take off with the lot. Crows have to live but they're not endangered and I don't want to spend money on them.

I'm about to give up. What am I doing wrong? Why won't birds come to the feeders in the dead of winter when presumably there's little food around.

**domino** · 30-Oct-08, 20:55

You could try one of the feeders which only small birds can access

**Ricco** · 31-Oct-08, 15:55

Originally Posted by Tilter

Read this thread with interest because I was going to start a thread about my birdfeeding problems but this one's on topic.

Every year I put out feeders with fat balls or nuts. They sit there untouched until they go black and mouldy or the wind blows them away (I attach them to trees at other end of garden).

We're surrounded by fields (some crops, some set-aside, some hay/sileage/grazing), with both a pine forest and deciduous woodland within 5 minutes walking distance. We have two resident blackbird couples, robins and wrens actually in the garden. Outside the garden in hedges etc. I see goldfinch, coal and blue tits, chaffinch etc. There's also owls and raptors about. We have a cat but he never bothers birds and the resident birds are totally used to him. We've no close neighbours feeding birds.

OH does birdfeeding sometimes. For him this consists of making lard sandwiches from old bread which he puts in an old roasting pan on top of the coal bunker. (!!!) I have to admit that our residents come to this but never get a look in before crows and the odd scorrie come and take off with the lot. Crows have to live but they're not endangered and I don't want to spend money on them.

I'm about to give up. What am I doing wrong? Why won't birds come to the feeders in the dead of winter when presumably there's little food around.

The birds need to feel safe. Make sure your feeders are near trees of bushes where they can dart to safety should the need arise. Also, since you have a cat, make sure that there is nowhere the cact an hide below the feeders. Would you sit at a table for lunch knowing that there were lions and Pterodactyls about if there was nowhere to quickly take cover?

**Anji** · 31-Oct-08, 16:26

Have you tried putting bits of lard sandwiches in the feeders? If they still won't use them, it means they don't like either the feeders or where they are positioned. Maybe you could try moving them nearer to the coal bunker.

**the_count** · 31-Oct-08, 20:01

I've got one of those window feeders set up othe front window and i use the sill to put out bread and stuff for em but all i get is starlings ..... hundreds of em lol. Had a couple of sparrows a few times but nothing else yet and yes we have cats that sit in the window licking their lips ... but the starlings don't seem to mind lol