Thanks for the reminder - I need to net the cherry trees!
I have four feeders - one stuck to the window, one hanging from a tree, one on a table and one on the ground under a cage which excludes everything bigger than a blackbird. Only the table is accessible for pigeons, and they pretty much hoover everything up at once. The more determined ones tie themselves in knots trying to feed from the window feeder. If two of them get on it at once, it sometimes falls off.
The small birds are picky and won't eat the sunflower seeds until there's nothing else left, so I pass on their leftovers to the pigeons.
When I say pigeons, I'm in town; we do get woodies and collared doves, but they are heavily outnumbered by the flying rats.
I draw the line at feeding the herring gulls. I took pity on them at the start of lockdown when their usual seafront diet of half-eaten takeaway meals disappeared, and gave them a few table scraps. They made such a nuisance of themselves that I soon stopped.
Even pigeons aren't stupid. They will go where they think the food is available with the least effort. If they can't get it from your feeders they will find it elsewhere.
Why would somebody want pigeons in their gardens? Our next door neighbour keeps feeding them - they are literally everywhere and getting more and more.
There are so many wonderful little birds (some are endangered) that are much more pleasurable to watch and feed. Just my opinion 😊
Why would somebody want pigeons in their gardens? Our next door neighbour keeps feeding them - they are literally everywhere and getting more and more.
There are so many wonderful little birds (some are endangered) that are much more pleasurable to watch and feed. Just my opinion 😊
Well, I can't say as I specifically want them in the garden, I just felt guilty at seeing them try to get food and failing! I'm a bit of a pushover
I'm not sure that we can actually dictate who comes into our gardens - we probably all have a favourite bird species but it is a bit like having to put up with a visit from a relative you aren't too keen on - you'd offer them a cup of tea etc. and hope they'll b****r before too long
I'd like more variety in my garden. At the moment, aside from the pigeons, we get blackbirds, blue tits, robins, sparrows, magpies and starlings. We did see a couple of goldfinches on the fence the other day for the first time, OH and I were very excited There's a spinney at the end of our road so there has to be a lot more species close by than those currently visiting. Good analogy
'My' small birds have no problem getting food alongside all the other bigger birds, because the bigger birds can't get inside their purpose built, 'des res' feeding stations Simples. The woodies really aren't an issue here at all, and its all part and parcel of living beside farmland and woods and an NT garden. We get everything @philippa smith2 mentions - although rarely the collared doves, and the woodies stay in the nearby woodland. No song thrushes here - but mistle thrushes instead. We also have coal tits and the odd goldcrest,and jackdaws, occasionally wagtails, and many more in the surrounding areas. They're all welcome...more welcome than human visitors...
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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I have four feeders - one stuck to the window, one hanging from a tree, one on a table and one on the ground under a cage which excludes everything bigger than a blackbird. Only the table is accessible for pigeons, and they pretty much hoover everything up at once. The more determined ones tie themselves in knots trying to feed from the window feeder. If two of them get on it at once, it sometimes falls off.
The small birds are picky and won't eat the sunflower seeds until there's nothing else left, so I pass on their leftovers to the pigeons.
When I say pigeons, I'm in town; we do get woodies and collared doves, but they are heavily outnumbered by the flying rats.
I draw the line at feeding the herring gulls. I took pity on them at the start of lockdown when their usual seafront diet of half-eaten takeaway meals disappeared, and gave them a few table scraps. They made such a nuisance of themselves that I soon stopped.
I'd like more variety in my garden. At the moment, aside from the pigeons, we get blackbirds, blue tits, robins, sparrows, magpies and starlings. We did see a couple of goldfinches on the fence the other day for the first time, OH and I were very excited
Simples.
The woodies really aren't an issue here at all, and its all part and parcel of living beside farmland and woods and an NT garden.
We get everything @philippa smith2 mentions - although rarely the collared doves, and the woodies stay in the nearby woodland. No song thrushes here - but mistle thrushes instead.
We also have coal tits and the odd goldcrest,and jackdaws, occasionally wagtails, and many more in the surrounding areas.
They're all welcome...more welcome than human visitors...
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...