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Chat => Chit Chat => Topic started by: UncleUB on December 14, 2010, 11:44:03 AM
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Can anyone give me some tips on what kind are the best to get.Sue wants to put some up.We have only ever hung those fat balls up before,but tbh the birds didn't seem that interested.I ended up breaking them up and laying them on the flat top of the privet hedge.They then were munched with great gusto.
Also what is the best kind of food to put put out for them
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By and large I would say that the hopper type of feeder is best, and the more you pay the longer they last. Something like this (http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav.jsp?action=detail&fh_secondid=10548098&fh_view_size=12&fh_start_index=24&fh_eds=%3f&fh_location=%2f%2fcatalog01%2fen_GB%2fcategories%3C{9372012}%2fcategories%3C{9372024}%2fcategories%3C{9372082}%2fspecificationsProductType%3dbird_feeders&fh_refview=lister&ts=1292327423579&isSearch=false) would be very good but you can get similar but more flimsy ones for quite a bit less. If you fill it with sunflower hearts you'll get a lot of grateful birds, or you could use a general wild bird mix, which might not be quite so popular. A peanut feeder might attract tits, but can be a bit hit and miss.
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Latterly I've more or less given up with bird feeders - bought a bird table for £9.99 from Robert Dyas - http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/P~142282~Self-Assembly+Bird+Table (http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/P~142282~Self-Assembly+Bird+Table) It's a bit lightweight and flimsy, but not bad for the price. Now I know that the birds like it I'll buy or build a decent one when it wears out. The fat wood pigeons landing on it knocked it over, so had to put a couple of canes into the ground to stabilize it. It's also available from QD stores at the same price: http://www.qdstores.co.uk/ (http://www.qdstores.co.uk/)
Cheers,
Peter
PS - You can brush up on birdsong identification here: http://avocet.zoology.msu.edu/recordings?name_search=Common+Blackbird (http://avocet.zoology.msu.edu/recordings?name_search=Common+Blackbird)
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We use a smaller type than the one in Eric's link and also a wire mesh one for the 'Peanuts' and a plastic tray made from part of one of my daughter's old toys .
We have the feeders hung in a plumb tree on 1/16th Steel wire to stop the squirrels biting through and steeling all the food when it falls on the floor >:D.
The fat balls, if they come in a plastic mesh bag I take it out(because the birds can get there feet in it and get stuck :'( ), make a small hole through it and hang it on a piece of wire.
Phil sent you a PM last night ! :)
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Phil sent you a PM last night !
Hi Mike,not noticed till now :-[
Will give your joinery problem a bit of thought,its a tricky one this.
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Make sure you can take it apart easy for cleaning.
Just buy some cheap small ones to start from homebase or some other store, what I do is clean one and replace it with the one I cleaned last time and rotate them around.
I have a fat one, a seed one and a peanut one. At the moment the peanuts seem to be the favorite :-)
Wire for peanuts and a hopper like one for seeds.
Starter Seed Feeder (http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=717521&Trail=searchtext>BIRD)
Starter Peanut Feeder (http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=713660&Trail=searchtext>BIRD)
Both £3.49 each
And make sure you can sweep up after them every few days so as not to attract vermin.
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As regards food, all the birds in my locale overdose on sunflower hearts......they just can't get enough of them.
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As regards food, all the birds in my locale overdose on sunflower hearts......they just can't get enough of them.
Yes they do and peanuts.
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Got the feeders,one seed,one peanut.Hung them up and filled with seed and peanuts......nothing :o No interest at all.Seem more interested in bread people put out.
Thought of getting a 'SEED THIS WAY' sign :D
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To the birds, the feeders are something new in the garden and they will be wary of them for a while until convinced that they do not pose a threat.
Give them an hour or so and they will then be eating you out of house and home.. ;D
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Give them an hour or so
Sue put them up......Friday ???
She even put some seed in a flat container on top of the privet hedge to 'entice' them.
they will then be eating you out of house and home.
Got a 2kg bag of seed from Asda for .......£1.
Those sunflower hearts that were mentioned on here were £3.41 for a small bag :o
(https://forum.kitz.co.uk/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.groceries.asda.com%2Fg%2F104%2F294%2F5051054104294_21000_IDShot_2.jpeg&hash=ce4d9b7b6e5543d0eb65f805af658d77d7408164)
I can eat for less :lol:
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>>Sue put them up......Friday <<< :hmm:
Try a different location.....the feeders should be near a bush/hedge, somewhere leafy where the can flight to quickly if danger threatens. And high enough to deter cats.
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And high enough to deter cats.
(https://forum.kitz.co.uk/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ft2.gstatic.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcRpEeSNbBuB1VGXVXx222B1iYOuL1c0pjT4RZoSRLJh2rIYhR0k&hash=7a7bb1780b005fb324a3c825664770a10a811c57)
:lol:
We got the feeders similar to the ones in BritBrats links.
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:lol:
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Got them hung on where the hanging baskets were
(https://forum.kitz.co.uk/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Flh3.ggpht.com%2F_0gk6jcD9fuE%2FTSmQIEuNGWI%2FAAAAAAAAB2g%2Fm-aE3KDv2-4%2Fs720%2FP1030076.JPG&hash=1ffbeacc3ce15b4fc8a1d0c6dbe4876cae70a026)
She has now located the seed feeder onto a branch on the plum tree
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That may be just a bit close to the house, Phil. Some birds will come right up to the window to feed, but it takes them longer to get the courage.
On the subject of the price of seed, it does vary a lot in quality, and the cheaper seed mixes contain a lot of wheat which isn't so attractive to the small birds (although pigeons will happily scoff it). We get our seed from a local pet shop which sells it loose, and you help yourself and get it weighed. It's cheaper that way, and better quality than the cheap supermarket variety.
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Thanks Eric
We only have a small rear garden and finding a suitable (cat free) location is not easy.Next door have a cat,and next door but one have 2 >:(
We do have plenty of trees at the top of the garden,but too high to be accessible to hang feeders from.
We have blackbirds,thrushes,magpies,bluetits and of course the fat greedy pigeons.We have on occasions had pied wagtails. :)
Thought we would get them use to the feeders with the cheaper cuts before we introduce them to the fillet ;D
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;D
With apologies to cat lovers, they are a bit of a menace where birds are concerned. Your hanging basket support looks good, and if you wait a bit longer, you'll probably get the birds venturing in. A bit of grated cheese goes down well with robins too, by the way.
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A bit of grated cheese goes down well with robins too, by the way.
With a selection of biscuits and pickles. ;D
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Hi
One other type of feeder is useful "Nijer seed Feeder " this is lile a plastic tube but only has very small holes as the seeds are very small . Nijer seed (used to be spelt with a g) is very small . To avoid waste some have a small tray under them , or you can add your own tray using plant pot saucers . Goldfinches are especially attracted to Nijer seed . I never had any in my garden for many years until I tried this seed ,took about a month for them to appear regularly .now up to a dozen visit .
see http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cranswick-Nyjer-Seed-Feeder-140C10/dp/B003U6QBZ4
Regards Jeff
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Those sunflower hearts that were mentioned on here were £3.41 for a small bag
I can eat for less :lol:
Prices do vary a lot because I think they're also used by bakeries but these are more reasonable :-
http://www.wildbirddirect.com/products/sunflower-hearts/
Also try your local garden centre as some sell it loose, that's the cheapest way to buy bird seed.
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Thanks Jeff and Oranged for all the info etc. :)
Looking at the link Oranged supplied I can't believe the choice or variety there is foe these little mites. :o
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If you want to really make the birds happy, get some live mealworms and put them in a bowl somewhere handy for the birds. But I suggest you don't store them in the kitchen. ;D
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They will be fine on the hanging basket brackets as that is what I do.
Just part fill the feeders until the birds start eating it all then you can fill them up later.
Birds come right up to our window.
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No joy with the feeders.. :no:
But....they are taking stuff out of trays on the top of the privet hedge...including chunks of coconut and punnets of blueberries(Sue gets them cheap when the sell by date has expired. ;)
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Sounds like the birds are getting you & Sue well trained :D
Well they are Sheffield birds after all. ;)
The birds round here won't touch any bread that I put out until it has started to dry out. So they are just as fussy round here.
The blackbirds like it on the floor, if it's any higher up they will throw it on the grass and the eat it. Magpies just take it in big lumps. I've only seen one robin this winter and it wasn't interested. It's good fun trying to work out what they are going to do.
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Don't forget the RSPB's Annual Big Garden Birdwatch Sat/Sun 29/30 Jan http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/ (http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/)
Cheers,
Peter
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Wilkinsons sell a range of cheap bird food. Our birds turned their noses up at all the expensive brands so we bought some from Wilkinsons and the lot had gone in less than an hour.
In the last week we have had a Greater Spotted woodpecker who unnerved us completely by walking backwards down the tree truck and a pair of Redwings.
All good fun.
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We saw a pair of Pied Wagtails yesterday,foraging about in the carpark at Meadowhall Centre,the last place I would have expected to see them :)
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I'm baffled as to why your feeders are being ignored, unkyUb......even if you had the "wrong" food in them, you would expect something to find them attractive.
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I'm baffled as to why your feeders are being ignored, unkyUb......even if you had the "wrong" food in them, you would expect something to find them attractive.
The seed in one of the feeders is the same as is being consumed out of shallow plastic containers on top of the privet.The other feeder which has peanuts in is also being ignored,saying that we haven't seen any Blue tits of late.
The Blackbirds are loving the blueberries and coconut. :)
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I'm baffled as to why your feeders are being ignored, unkyUb......even if you had the "wrong" food in them, you would expect something to find them attractive.
Maybe the lack of red carpet? :lol:
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We saw a pair of Pied Wagtails yesterday,foraging about in the carpark at Meadowhall Centre,the last place I would have expected to see them :)
Car parks are among their favourite places for some reason. We often see them in the local Tescos and Sainsburys car parks.
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We saw a pair of Pied Wagtails yesterday,foraging about in the carpark at Meadowhall Centre,the last place I would have expected to see them :)
Car parks are among their favourite places for some reason. We often see them in the local Tescos and Sainsburys car parks.
This was an underground one,with open access at the sides.Perhaps we should take our bird feeders down there ;D
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That's a bit like taking the water to the horse. You still can't make the horse drink though. :)
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Birds sometimes take a while to get used to a new feeder in the area,sometimes they just don't like the position for reasons you may not be able to see.
I just got some new 6 port feeders today to replace some that were falling to bits and all the birds are now sat in plum trees at the edge of the garden waiting to see who will be brave enough to make the first test landing, it could be minutes or even a couple of days.
I bought from CJ Wild Foods http://www.birdfood.co.uk/ and have to say the service is amazing, I ordered yesterday online, got a confirmation order at 11:43 AM saying 2-3 day delivery and at 2:00 PM today they arrived .
Their site has lots of bird feeding/watching information a forum and live bird feeder webcam.
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When I was with my ex wife we had one of these http://www.birdfood.co.uk/products.php?area_id=2&nav_id=32
and http://www.birdfood.co.uk/product_details.php?area_id=2&group_id=17&nav_id=33&prd_id=950
Used to put raisins out for the blackbirds,they loved them and would come quite close to you when we was putting them out.Had a small bowl of water for the birds and was funny watching them bathing.
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I saw somewhere, cannot remember where, but a long time ago, that Pied Wagtails frequent car parks because they like to pick all the splattered bugs off the car bumpers :P.
Our propery purchase in Seasalter has finally fallen through so we bought a bungalow in Swalecliffe today. Last autumn we looked at one a short distance up the same road; the owner claimed that he could not feed the birds because the presence of small birds attracted Raptors, which then decimated the local populations (birds that is). This pm we could see bird feeders all over the place, and in every garden visible, and the little old lady owner said she, and her neighbours, never had a problem. Mind you they were flying a top cover of 2/300 gulls ;).
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Raptors present means one thing, a healthy balanced ecology, it is perfectly natural and keeps the smaller bird populations strong and disease free. It is the householder that gets upset about "their" birds being attacked but the sad truth is many a well meaning householder kills birds through a combination of kindness and ignorance.
ALL bird feeders and water supplies need regular cleaning/disinfecting otherwise viruses spread rapidly through contact at feeders etc. Peanuts, often a source of major problems, cheap supplies are often toxic,only give quality tested nuts, never use whole peanuts as a loose feed in the spring/summer as inexperienced parent birds feed them to their young resulting in the chick choking to death ( this has been recorded as one of the biggest killers of young birds).
If you do have raptors around and want to avoid them getting at birds on a table you can place tall canes in the ground on the flight path to the bird table .
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I agree with all that AdrianH has stated above, and would only add that by feeding the birds you are effectively concentrating a population which would otherwise be spread over a much wider area.
Concentrate the birds....so concentrate the raptors, and other predators. Also you create an ideal situation for fighting and bickering which all takes energy and resources better deployed in the art of living.
I always find it strange that people bemoan the fact that a raptor has killed and eaten a songbird.......but it is ok that the songbird has in it's life killed and eaten butterflies, moths, beetles etc.
Nature is a very cruel place.......when viewed from a human perspective. To wildlife, it's merely trying to stay alive.
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Well after all this time the feeder remain untouched.They are hung on our plum tree but have not created any interest.
The blackbirds are taking seed and blueberries from plastic trays positioned on top of the flat privet hedge.
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I've been watching the blackbirds and they seem to prefer feeding that way UncleUB. I threw some bread crumbs out one day and they landed on top of a small cabinet type shed I made for the garden tools. The blackbirds soon found them and immediately threw them on the grass before eating them. Any that were left on top of the cabinet were taken by the magpies. The magpies did not touch the ones in the grass, only the ones on the cabinet, which I might add they took away to eat. It's a very amusing pastime watching them.
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Well after all this time the feeder remain untouched.They are hung on our plum tree but have not created any interest.
The blackbirds are taking seed and blueberries from plastic trays positioned on top of the flat privet hedge.
Any results yet? My new feeders have taken a week to get visits but now the Greenfinches have found them traffic is increasing.
The time of year of course has a big part to lay as the breeding season is getting underway and the birds are sorting out their territories for the coming few months, the dynamics do change around early March,once there are hatchlings to feed things will change.
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Well after all this time the feeder remain untouched.They are hung on our plum tree but have not created any interest.
The blackbirds are taking seed and blueberries from plastic trays positioned on top of the flat privet hedge.
Any results yet? My new feeders have taken a week to get visits but now the Greenfinches have found them traffic is increasing.
The time of year of course has a big part to lay as the breeding season is getting underway and the birds are sorting out their territories for the coming few months, the dynamics do change around early March,once there are hatchlings to feed things will change.
Only from the plastic trays,the feeders are still untouched.We had a beautiful Mistle Thrush yesterday eating out of the seed trays.The Blackbirds love the blueberries.
They only get them when Sue manages to get some which have been reduced in her store when they are out of date
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Just to update...the feeders have been repositioned to where they were originally and guess what....they are being used :thumbs:
Blue tits and sparrows are now using them with great gusto. ;D
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Terrific! :)
I wouldn't be surprised if you've got some young ones amongst those. You might see them fluttering their wings to attract the adults to feed them.
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Good news, unkyUb, albeit a long time coming. ;D
Who can account for the thought processes of our feathered friends, avoid the feeders for a year and now they can't get enough of them.. :D
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The pigeons are now pacing up and down on top of the privet hedge like the Gestapo wondering how to get to the seed. ;D
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The pigeons are now pacing up and down on top of the privet hedge like the Gestapo wondering how to get to the seed. ;D
Do they have rifles and slope wings as they march up and down :lol: Can just imagine the scene lololol.
Good news though Uncy that your feeders are at last being used, can imagine just how pleased you are after the long wait....everything comes to he who waits is true then :)
Chrissie
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I have had to spend a small fortune on squirrel proof cages to go on my feeder pole trays. We don't get squirrels but pigeons,doves,jackdaws , rooks and crows by the dozen, Hitchcock's Birds all over again, any food put out is gone in seconds and once the "black mob" arrive every Gull for miles around assumes there must be something for them also.
The cages now mean that the vultures are not beating the small birds to the feed. I am still getting through 8kilos + of mixed seed per week ???