Any keen bird feeders out there?

Fay

They are in the same place as the old feeders, just new versions. I'm sure they will return it's just when. The robins are enjoying the peace and have been in the dish on the feeding station lots lol

cyclonebri1

Do a fair bit of gardening at this time of year, the attention from the blackbirds and robins is really amazing, they take worms of the spade!!!

rceebear

We used to feed the birds all year round but had to cut back due to financial constraints. We have 10+ feeders still but will be giving a few away to friends so they can be used. I'm going to clean them this week, ready for starting feeding again now that it's getting colder. Need to look at sourcing the best value but good quality foods really as they go through quite a lot of food.

We used to provide a lot of peanuts in mesh type feeders but had trouble sourcing good quality reasonably priced peanuts. Problems with mould so had to throw a lot away. Now have moved to sunflower seeds which seem just as popular, even with the woodpeckers that we were concerned might be a bit miffed that the peanuts were no more.

Also, fatballs (minus the mesh as birds can get caught in this), the wood peckers love these as do lots of the others.

A good quality (little or no large seed that the little birds don't touch, although this does get cleared up quickly by our chickens) mixed seed goes in a huge feeder we go free for signing up as RSPB members at a show.

The other one that is popular is Niger/Nyger seed as we see a lot of goldfinches and Siskins when it's cold. Need to buy some more of this actually.

We are surrounded by farmland and have woodland close by so get a good variety of birds. We have seen a marsh or willow tit for the last few years. Would love to get a better look to work out if he's a marsh or willow. Apparently it's best to go by the call but I've not been able to get close enough to hear him over the chatter of the other birds.

I saw a family of nuthatches check out our empty feeders today so think it's time to start feeding again. Also, a robin hanging around and I've heard long-tailed tits about.

Gers

Came back home after a week away to find a dead siskin on the feeder tray - the other birds weren't coming close.

Wonder if the storm got it or another bird - they do squabble a lot.

Ken68

Sad, lovely birds.
Fox trouble here, one cat injured. And haven't seen that wild rabbit lately.

twiglet98

Ken68 wrote: »

Sad, lovely birds.
Fox trouble here, one cat injured. And haven't seen that wild rabbit lately.

Our two year old cat has disappeared, we're very rural and he's never been a hunter or wanderer. Statistically more likely to be a road casualty, but we do have foxes in the wood, and I wonder how likely it is that he encountered one sniffing around the chickens here and next door. Someone was shooting pigeons up there last weekend and has stirred them up a bit. Or a stoat, or rat. There are mink by the river a mile away but I can't imagine he would go that far. One of the other cats is a prolific hunter and we are keeping them shut indoors for now, the birds know she isn't outside!

One morning last week a pair of great spotted woodpeckers were on the sunflower heart feeder outside the kitchen window AND a green woodpecker in the bird bath - I see (or hear) it regularly along the fringe of the wood, and it crosses the garden sometimes, but I've never seen it land near the house!

Happygreen

Sorry about your losses, folks.
We have a new addition, handsome Mr pheasant has decided to wait for chicken and duck feeding time most mornings. I'll try to upload a picture later.

Gers

Happygreen - how's the pheasant doing?

I've now got two collared doves coming to feed - at least that's what I assume they are.

Food getting hoovered up in my back garden. Is it best to keep the feeders fully supplied (but then the birds get reliant on them) or let them be emptied and left for a few days inbetween? I'm not sure of the ethics or even if there are ethics involved.

Chris25

Went to wash out one of the birdbaths this morning and made a bizarre discovery - a daffodil bulb with quite long roots sitting in the middle of it!

I checked some pots that I had newly planted-up with bulbs and stashed under an arbutus, and low and behold, there are holes galore in them and potting compost all over the place!

I'm not sure whether it's down to squirrels, magpies or jays. The magpies have lifted out all the loose concrete between our paving slabs and they've become a bit of a nuisance this year, crowding out the little birds at feeders but I've seen the squirrels and jays over by the pots too.

Saw a green & a greater spotted woodpecker this morning - the green on the grass and the other pecking underneath the last bits of rotten wood on one our old apple trees, which we've been losing, bit-by-bit, over the last few years - I have a feeling this will be it's last winter

It's going to be quite sad - our children had a zipwire between that and another, a swing, they used it's branches to hangs sheets off to make tents and camps and one cat, in particular, used to lie, leopard-like, across a huge bough. it's going to leave a great hole in our landscape.

Ken68

Maybe already mentioned, B and M have 12.75kg wild bird seed...£4.99