Any keen bird feeders out there?

Primrose

Yes, with that pink blushed breast it does look like a linnet. Lucky you! Good to see your bird feeders are close to some bushes/trees where they can dash for shelter if they suddenly feel threatened. Apparently birds are more wary of usng bird feeders in the open, especially in our area where the sparrowhawk makes regular forays! Ours is immediately adjacent to a magnolia bush and they often steal a sunflower seed or tidbit from one of the feeders and then dash into the bush to eat it at their leisure in its safety.

Gers

Primrose wrote: »

Yes, with that pink blushed breast it does look like a linnet. Lucky you! Good to see your bird feeders are close to some bushes/trees where they can dash for shelter if they suddenly feel threatened. Apparently birds are more wary of usng bird feeders in the open, especially in our area where the sparrowhawk makes regular forays! Ours is immediately adjacent to a magnolia bush and they often steal a sunflower seed or tidbit from one of the feeders and then dash into the bush to eat it at their leisure in its safety.

Thanks Primrose. It's a delightful bird with that lovely red head and breast.

The photo is deceptive as I had to zoom the camera a lot. Right next to the three feeders, to the left of the pic, is a large hydrangea bush to which the birds retreat to nibble the sunflower hearts.

I've had a hen harrier in the gsrden once last year but apart from it getting dive bombed by swallows it was really inert. The garden is walled so it had no space to swoop and catch.

The Linnet is sort of the icing on my bird cake. I don't know if it's a single bird or not as I only see one at a time, unlike the hordes of goldfinches and tits.

Happygreen

Good morning, all.
I didn't see it because of my feeding habits but I did enjoy seeing an Osprey fly across when I drove down the hill yesterday. Stunning!

Braithwaite1000

Hi all,
I get a selection of Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Greenfinch, House Sparrows, Tree Sparrows, Great Tits, Blue Tits and recently a family of starlings in my garden. I highly recommend providing sunflower hearts in the garden to attract a bunch of different birds!

KxMx

Don't forget in this warm weather to put out water and keep it topped up. Not just for the birds but other wildlife.

I have a large £1 plant saucer from Wilko as the water dish for my birds, so they can drink or bathe.

Always amuses me to see the magpie bathe in it as he's a bit too big but manages it in the end!

torbrex

I didn't have my counting head on when in Poundstretched buying food for my garden birds so I asked the assistant which was better value, the 3 blocks for £1.69 or the 10 blocks at a smaller size for £4.99.
She assured me that the pack of 10 worked out better value as she had done the maths.

I find that they are only fractionally better value but they do last longer because the birds don't seem to like them as much

Same holder, same place but not nearly as many visits, trouble is that there are still 9 to be used :eek:

KxMx

Try crumbling one down and leaving it for the ground feeders.

Braithwaite1000

If you have any seeds or mixes that you know the birds love, you could try melting the blocks down and making your own special blocks with them as you know they'll love the bits you've added. This could make the rest of the food you have go further too.

niftythrifty33

Hi, sorry if this has been posted before as I haven't been through all the pages.

I would like to attract birds to our garden but not sure where to start and I can't afford to spend much. We have a dog that's usually in the garden and the neighbour has a cat that's usually hanging around the front garden, will this put them off coming into our garden?

Thanks in advance

Braithwaite1000

Wild birds aren't often put off by other animals in the area.
Depending on your budget I'd recommend providing Sunflower Hearts or a Bird Seed mix in the garden.
If you decide to get a mix make sure that it doesn't have raisins in it, if your dog eats the raisins it could become seriously ill.
Be careful when buying cheap seed mixes, many of them have very high wheat content which the birds simply won't eat.
If you plan on buying in bulk I'd recommend doing so online, most sites have free delivery and are better value for money than shops.