Birdfeeders - how many and how often do you refill?

Wow @luciusmaximus! That must cost you a fortune every day! But the benefit of seeing the lovely wildlife must be worth it.

I found out who the culprits are raiding the bird seed....two squizzles! Yay! I love them-we hardly have any here as there are no big trees in the nearby vicinity-but two little tinkers have appeared this year. Caught one hanging upside down from my homemade coconut feeders-going mad for the crunchy peanut butter no doubt.

Had two woodpeckers again yesterday aswell.

weve got coal tits, great tits, blue tits, numerous robins (the same family i think) jenny wren, collared doves, wood pigeons, maggies and “the crow family” oh and a couple of blackbirds (my ultimate favourite of all the garden birds). Havent seen any chaffinches here though. It’s so lovely to see and watch them.

 

Bought a new bird feeding station at wilkos, as well as 3 new bird feeders which are easy to clean and sturdy. I’ve got it up in the front garden where I can see it from my seat in the living room-it’s loaded up with seed, fat balls and peanuts ready for the morning

 

Last summer, when my old plastic seed feeder broke, I treated myself to a smart new metal one with an integral ,outer cage. I also bought a new packet of seed. The old feeder was well used but this new one wasn't even sniffed at. I bought myself another cheap plastic one to see if it was the style of feeder that was the problem. That one isn't being used either. The only other thing could be the type of seed. It's called wild bird seed so to me I can't see why there should be a problem. To test the theory I have started spread the seed out onto the bird table. That is definitely getting eaten but I couldn't say by what. At some point when I think about it I will get myself a new bag of seed. As I'm not sure which seed I bought last time, that might be easier said than done.

G.

 

I buy the food in bulk online . It doesn't last long. The Starlings are the most greedy of birds, total free for all in the morning when first lot of food goes out

I forgot to add we have two or three Blackbirds, two Robins and a Thrush. The latter appeared last winter and has returned this year. Also have four Wrens roosting in side of house, which we've never had before . I discovered them a few weeks ago and thought the bundle of feathers I could see was a dead sparrow killed in the storm we had just had. When I tried to remove the body it came to life and gave me a bit of a fright. I was mortified I had disturbed them but they forgave me and returned within the hour. Been here ever since. We can't use the tumble dryer at night or go into the garage and we have to use the front door instead of the back door if we go out or come in after dusk, but don't mind that in the slightest.

I wish I had Squizzers but it's not squizzer habitat here. Very pleased to read you went to the trouble of catching the rats and releasing them

 

I wouldn't dream of killing them, they're just animals going about their life - got to be respectful of them as our house (old farm building) is built on farm land and we've encroached on their home. I recorded their release and was a funny little video to watch. I hope they did ok out there in the big world

Been sat watching the new bird feeder for the past couple of hours! Mainly blue tits and great tits and the robin and wood pigeon tidying up things that have fallen.

 

I only have one seed dispenser which I refill every day, once its gone, its gone as keeping up with the birds can be a problem.
I used to find a lot got wasted when I bought mixed seed, a lot went on the ground, as the birds were looking for certain kinds of seed.
I now only buy a 20kg bag of sunflower hearts every 6 months, it does last that long with only the one fill per day of the feeder.

As a consequence I now still get lots of sparrows but also lots of gold crests, something I never used to see.

I still have one feeder of "fat balls for the little tits", and the starlings.

Any leftover bacon fat gets mixed with seed and poured into half coconut shells which the starlings also like.
Blackbirds like the dried cat food I also put out daily.

Dont put out much bread these days, but when I do the pigeons and gulls love it.

 

I think I may try just buying a specific seed like sunflower hearts as I was watching the birds and they were just flicking out what they didn't want - even though the wood pigeons were enjoying it.

The other day I said I hadn't seen any chaffinches - well that's changed already - saw one today! :D

Also get pied wagtails - had a family of them during the summer. so cute with the bobbing tails.

 

Think I said gold crests,
I think I meant gold finches.

 

I must be feeding to many as last year we bought 750kg's of sunflower hearts, peanuts, suet pellets and Niger seed

but we do like the wildlife here so not a problem

 

How long did it last ?

 

750kg's last for about a year that's the total bought for the year

 

Wish I was a millionaire

 

The pesky Squirrels are running a mock here ,I don't mind a fair thing but the birds don't stand a chance.
I was watching the crow family in the garden scooping up the dried meal worms and spitting them out in the dogs outside water bowl,they obviously prefer them rehydrated as after 10 mins they scoop them out again..very clever...

 

I've also seen crows dip pieces of stale bread in the bird bath to soften them up.

 

Crows (and Magpies ) get a lot of bad press. I like them and think they are misunderstood. I was talking to someone awhile ago. She likes birds of prey but dislikes Crows and Magpies - filthy vermin was her exact words. She blames the Maggies for eating the Wren chicks in her garden. I pointed out that a raptor would have eaten them too had it found them. Her husband shot them . She then said crows/maggies attack lambs. I said birds of prey will attack small babies too and so will foxes and stoats.

I think Crows and Magpie chicks need meat when they are very young, much the same as other bird chicks needing live insects. I don't think the adults need fresh meat but not entirely sure on that point? Certainly they would eat it if they found it though, ie, roadkill. And those who don't get fed by humans would eat whatever they can find. The adults here eat the same as everyone else all year round ,suet pellets, suet blocks with fruit/nuts, sunflower hearts and fat balls and the left over hedgehog meat and biscuits.