We got our first real snow today. As you can see by the picture I took this morning, this Tufted titmouse in my front yard is taking advantage of the food I just put out. He sat in the tree waiting the entire time.
As happens every year, the first snow also brings in the first grackles and starlings. As any of you know that feed birds, they can be worse than squirrels. They show up in flocks and do not leave until the feeders are empty. While the problem usually is not bad this time of year, once February rolls around it becomes a daily battle.
There are a couple of actions you can take to help prevent needing to fill the feeders every day. When feeding suet try using an upside down feeder. While woodpeckers, chickadees, nuthatches and titmice don't mind feeding upside down, starlings and grackles do not care for it. It's not to say some will not figure it out because I have seen it, but for the most part it will eliminate that problem.
When feeding seed you can purchase a feeder that adjust to bird weight to close the ports. These are also used to feed squirrels and from what I hear work pretty well. You adjust the tension on the bar where the bid sits to feed. If the bird is to heavy the weight of the bird closes off the feeder. It's a pretty neat feature that I consider getting every year yet never have. Perhaps this year.
Finally you can switch all your feeders to safflower seed. It's more bitter and they are less likely to try and empty your feeder. There's no guarantee it will work but anything is worth a try. I am going to try one feeder with it this year and I'll post the results here.
For now I'm going to go sit by the window and enjoy the birds. So far today I've seen the following birds in the yard. Cardinals, Blue Jays, Tufted Titmice, A Carolina Wren, House Sparrows, House Finches, Downy Woodpeckers, Gold Finches, Starlings,both White & Red Breasted Nuthatches and dark eyed juncos. I'll try to get some pictures and share them here later this week. I work the next four days so I may not post as much. I'll try to post something as well as keep my eyes open for something new in the yard.
6 comments:
So, where is your favorite spot inside to sit and watch the birds? Is it in the first room on the right as you head down the hall? (the one you redecorated about 5 years ago). Great pictures too, btw.
Love,
pone
I'll be curiously watching for your report on the Safflower experiment. I got so weary of constantly refilling my backyard feeder due to the grackles and starlings last year, that I finally quit messing with it!
I do have one of those weight sensitive feeders in my front yard. I can vouch for it working, but it isn't a very attractive feeder.
Pone....I usually watch from the bedroom or kitchen. The picture of the titmouse was taken from the living room. The feeding has gotten so large it's 180 degrees now .lol.....Ren I'll definetly post the results. I'm planning on trying it soon as the grackles and starlings invade which is usually late January or February here. I know they like everything else I feed. Even tried hot pepper suet and they ate it in one day.
I enjoyed reading your blog and seeing your photos. We use safflower here in Maryland and it does seem to cut down on the grackles and starlings. We also have one of the weight sensitive feeders and love seeing the squirrels baffled by it's entry.
Today I had two of the largest Blue Jays I think I've ever seen visiting my feeders. My husband and I never tire of birding.
I've had a weight-sensitive feeder for a few years now, but the squirrels have figured it out. A squirrel will leap up to it and wedge its back feet on a stationary section (usually the top of the glass) and then dig and dump the seed mix. Since feeding the birds and squirrels makes my mom happy (and she's the principal watcher here), I tolerate it. All the same, I'm probably going to replace the feeder soon and hope that a new model is a bit more anti-squirrel.
Farm & Fleet carries a line of feeders that purport to be squirrel-proof. Wal-Mart is where I got the current one, but their offerings have dwindled. They don't even have decent birdseed any more, either.
Howdy. I go to church with your sister, Toni and just discovered your blog.
We did saflower all spring and summer and let me tell you...even though I rarely saw a grackle or starling, there were STILL days where I'd watch the birds go through an entire feeder of seed--saflower. During the warm season, we get mostly house finches and cardinals on the actual feeder. The doves hang out underneath and eat what falls on the ground (this sounds like a parable from the bible...but I digress). We also have a lot of goldfinches in the area who would sometimes eat the saflower, so I put up a thistle feeder for them and they loved it. We also get the occasional sparrow and chickadee on the saflower feeder.
Anyway, I made the mistake of not filling the feeder for a while because it got so expensive and now I'm wondering if I should start back up again now that it's winter.
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