Over the past year blackbirds, sparrows, robins, etc. have completely disappeared from my garden, and as far as I can see from the neighbourhood in general. I live in a suburb of Birmingham and have for many years had a real mix of birds in the garden. Over the past year or so the magpies seem to have taken over completely, despite my best efforts to attract other species with my seed feeders. Is this something that I can do something about, or is it a general trend that an individual is powerless to change?
I have a bird 'station' with hanging feeders for seeds/nuts/fat balls etc. Although we have a lots of varied small birds we do get a couple of magpies too, that hoover everything up too. They don't seem to have any trouble with the hanging feeders
Magpies love suet and over the past few years there seems to have been an increase in suet based food for bird feeders (suet balls etc) and I think that's attracting them into gardens in the winter when they would normally be out in the fields, hedgerows and roadsides after carrion.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
The RSPB puts the declines in song birds down to intensive farming practice. Magpies are one of the very few species that have actually managed to adapt (because they are rather smart) so one should not blame them.
It is not true either that one can shoot magpies at any time. Magpies are protected by law (Wildlfe & Countryside Act 1981) and anyone killing or trapping them illegally faces fines. You can only trap them under licence.
I was told about an 'experiment' where magpies were trapped at a nature reserve in the hope that song bird numbers would increase. It did not work at all, without the magpies 'less attractive' bird species simply dominated.
It is often all too complicated for us to come along and mess with it. There has been some success at protecting ground nesting birds at reserves, but we don't get too many of those in our gardens so it is unlikely to help with birds in a garden. Other research has shown that it is the magpie population that relies on the song birds, removing the predator makes no difference at all to the prey species popoulations. What song birds are really missing is the ample food that was once in the countryside, weed seeds, insects, spilt corn, berries in the hedgerows.
Rant out of the way, bird boxes can take up to three years or more Gardening Grandma to get any interest. You could try putting in some straw at this time of year and see if birds use them as winter quarters. They might then think of nesting in them.
Sometimes when feeding the birds just trying a whole range of different things is the key. Often neighbours are feeding them already and many of the birds will be spoilt for choice. I have a friend who's birds never touch the peanuts, at my table the little guys are sat in the bushes waiting for me to put them out each day, but if I put out mixed seed it is never touched at all!
I don't put out bread as it tends to bring in mobs of starlings, but even they are declining so I might reconsider that. I find too that the magpies and jays at my table tend to come in at different times. They have their fill early on and the smaller birds come later.
The starlings are certainly not in decline in my garden. More than 50 have been at the freshly filled feeders this morning and there is hardly a scrap left. I saw a few sparrows, a robin and one yellowhammer (we used to have lots) feeding on the dropped seed.. One magpie and a jackdaw had no problems hanging on to the feeder.
At this rate I will not be able to afford to put any feed out
Good luck with attracting the smaller birds Gardening Grandma
We had the annual huge cloud of starlings come this weekend, they have always arrived at the end of September before, fortunately they by passed us and went the farm along the road.
I love to see the formation of them sweeping in, then change direction.
I dont mind feeding a few, they dont stay for long.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
I don't mind feeding a few either Lyn but we have a very happy,healthy population as it is without all the newcomers muscling in. They roost under the roof tiles and I've found them in the attic and bathroom this year.
S.I.l in Edinburgh has seagulls landing on the chimney and shouting down
Nigel - you could try the 'cage' on the ground or around hanging feeders. I used a little homemade ground cage last year, made from an old wall basket which I sat on the ground with the open side against a large square plant container. I put food in there for the ground feeding birds - dunnocks, robins etc and the magpies couldn't get into it so it let the small birds get a chance. I'd just put a samall amount of food in the open for them. We have an awful lot of magpies round here too. Blackbirds were rare in the garden too but I'm gradually getting them in too.
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'd be pleased to see anything - except those blasted gulls and magpies!
Over the past year blackbirds, sparrows, robins, etc. have completely disappeared from my garden, and as far as I can see from the neighbourhood in general. I live in a suburb of Birmingham and have for many years had a real mix of birds in the garden. Over the past year or so the magpies seem to have taken over completely, despite my best efforts to attract other species with my seed feeders. Is this something that I can do something about, or is it a general trend that an individual is powerless to change?
I have a bird 'station' with hanging feeders for seeds/nuts/fat balls etc. Although we have a lots of varied small birds we do get a couple of magpies too, that hoover everything up too. They don't seem to have any trouble with the hanging feeders
I doubt if it's all down to magpies. Look at the wider area. Changes in local environment, hedge removal, extra feeders in other gardens, more cats
In the sticks near Peterborough
Magpies love suet and over the past few years there seems to have been an increase in suet based food for bird feeders (suet balls etc) and I think that's attracting them into gardens in the winter when they would normally be out in the fields, hedgerows and roadsides after carrion.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
The RSPB puts the declines in song birds down to intensive farming practice. Magpies are one of the very few species that have actually managed to adapt (because they are rather smart) so one should not blame them.
It is not true either that one can shoot magpies at any time. Magpies are protected by law (Wildlfe & Countryside Act 1981) and anyone killing or trapping them illegally faces fines. You can only trap them under licence.
I was told about an 'experiment' where magpies were trapped at a nature reserve in the hope that song bird numbers would increase. It did not work at all, without the magpies 'less attractive' bird species simply dominated.
It is often all too complicated for us to come along and mess with it. There has been some success at protecting ground nesting birds at reserves, but we don't get too many of those in our gardens so it is unlikely to help with birds in a garden. Other research has shown that it is the magpie population that relies on the song birds, removing the predator makes no difference at all to the prey species popoulations. What song birds are really missing is the ample food that was once in the countryside, weed seeds, insects, spilt corn, berries in the hedgerows.
Rant out of the way, bird boxes can take up to three years or more Gardening Grandma to get any interest. You could try putting in some straw at this time of year and see if birds use them as winter quarters. They might then think of nesting in them.
Sometimes when feeding the birds just trying a whole range of different things is the key. Often neighbours are feeding them already and many of the birds will be spoilt for choice. I have a friend who's birds never touch the peanuts, at my table the little guys are sat in the bushes waiting for me to put them out each day, but if I put out mixed seed it is never touched at all!
I don't put out bread as it tends to bring in mobs of starlings, but even they are declining so I might reconsider that. I find too that the magpies and jays at my table tend to come in at different times. They have their fill early on and the smaller birds come later.
The starlings are certainly not in decline in my garden. More than 50 have been at the freshly filled feeders this morning and there is hardly a scrap left. I saw a few sparrows, a robin and one yellowhammer (we used to have lots) feeding on the dropped seed.. One magpie and a jackdaw had no problems hanging on to the feeder.
At this rate I will not be able to afford to put any feed out
Good luck with attracting the smaller birds Gardening Grandma
We had the annual huge cloud of starlings come this weekend, they have always arrived at the end of September before, fortunately they by passed us and went the farm along the road.
I love to see the formation of them sweeping in, then change direction.
I dont mind feeding a few, they dont stay for long.
I don't mind feeding a few either Lyn but we have a very happy,healthy population as it is without all the newcomers muscling in
. They roost under the roof tiles and I've found them in the attic and bathroom this year.
S.I.l in Edinburgh has seagulls landing on the chimney and shouting down
I loathe starlings. There - I've said it...
Nigel - you could try the 'cage' on the ground or around hanging feeders. I used a little homemade ground cage last year, made from an old wall basket which I sat on the ground with the open side against a large square plant container. I put food in there for the ground feeding birds - dunnocks, robins etc and the magpies couldn't get into it so it let the small birds get a chance. I'd just put a samall amount of food in the open for them. We have an awful lot of magpies round here too. Blackbirds were rare in the garden too but I'm gradually getting them in too.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...