Loads of sparrows and starlings in this new garden of mine - though I miss the varieties I could see in my previous garden I still find great enjoyment in watching the antics of the visitors - magpies enjoy soaking crusts of bread in the bird-bath to make them soft enough to eat and give short shrift to the Herring Gulls who try to muscle in on 'their' bread! The Gulls nest and roost on the neighbouring house roofs so can always see when there is anything they might like to steal from the smaller birds and I swear that one of them is trying to learn to hover in order to take stuff from the birdtable! He tries all ways to get at the food and seems to study all angles that might work! Speaking of Gulls - does anyone else watch them as they paddle their feet- like demented Irish dancers- in order to (I presume) bring worms to the surface to feed on ? The fact that they turn their back on you when they see you watching then carry on 'paddling' looks as if they are embarrassed to be seen doing it.
I don't know if this will be of interest to anybody, but I have had bird feeders in my garden for many years now and kept them toped up as soon as they were empty, once a week I would clean away any seed left on the ground and wash everything down.
Just recently when the feeders have been empty and I have been working in the garden I have left the topping up, but the birds still come and clear up all that has been dropped, so from now on when the feeders are empty I will leave them for a day or so and have less to throw away at the end of the week.
Our 'brat pack' is not the starlings, but a family of jackdaws who have found our feeders in the last 24 hours. Too big for them and not quite sure how to use them, they are setting the whole lot swinging, emptying seed onto the ground for the dunnocks and doves! This is the first time I've seen them go for the hanging feeders.
I couldn't agree more about Sparrows. They are cute, they always start chirping when I go out to feed them, and they will insist on trying to have a bath in the saucers of my potted Pitcher plants which means squeezing between pot & saucer! Obviously 6 bird baths just aren't enough. It's amazing what colourful little creatures they become when they are fed on decent seed for a length of time. They are certainly not the dowdy little birds that a lot of people think they are. This fact applies to all the birds, and I have to say that once they are used to your feeding stations, you can throw away pesticides etc. for good, which has to be good for the environment & our pockets. Better to spend the money on birdseed and get free entertainment into the bargain. Long live birds!
Hi, I only have a back yard but i have filled it up with plants and fruit trees. I also have a bird feeder and water for the birds. I put seeds out for the birds but none come into my back yard could anyone give me any help to attract birds to my yard. I have a bluetits nestbox up and a sparrows nest box but no luck. many thanks
South wales has held up as far as sparrow populations are concerned and for many years they were just "there" as they decline in numbers elsewhere. I've taken stock they are not just little raucous brown jobs but if you really stop and look they have really subtle colour and are as charming as any so i hope the awareness of how marvellous our own patch can be as fostered by springwatch and rspb etc halts their decline. You londoners rebel - reclaim your cockney sparrers back. I saw hundreds feeding from the hands of delighted people in st jamses park in the 70s. Put up your sparrow towers and they will come!
I've seen more birds in the garden this year than for many years. I have invested in a "Sonic Cat Scarer" from B&Q. The bonus is that I no longer have scorched plants where the cats used to leave their mark, nor disgusting , half-hidden piles in the soil. I think cats, together with the proliferation of magpies, who eat young chicks, contribute to the decline in the bird population.
I've seen more birds in the garden this year than for many years. I have invested in a "Sonic Cat Scarer" from B&Q. The bonus is that I no longer have scorched plants where the cats used to leave their mark, nor disgusting, half-hidden piles in the soil. I think cats, together with the proliferation of magpies, who eat young chicks, contribute to the decline in the bird population.
We live in Waterloo, south of Brussels in Belgium. Here also, we have not seen many sparrows for the last few years. They had become so rare that they seemed an endangered species. But grand news this year: 2 families (about 11 birds)are coming to the bird feeders in the garden. Thanks for your site and magazine, very much appreciated also here in Belgium.
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Speaking of Gulls - does anyone else watch them as they paddle their feet- like demented Irish dancers- in order to (I presume) bring worms to the surface to feed on ? The fact that they turn their back on you when they see you watching then carry on 'paddling' looks as if they are embarrassed to be seen doing it.
Just recently when the feeders have been empty and I have been working in the garden I have left the topping up, but the birds still come and clear up all that has been dropped, so from now on when the feeders are empty I will leave them for a day or so and have less to throw away at the end of the week.