Discussion:
Blackbird & starling attacking our garden :-(
(too old to reply)
Philip Colmer
2003-08-25 10:24:23 UTC
Permalink
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(

We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want worms
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.

The problem is, though, that they are digging in places where we really
would prefer it if they stopped!

Like a plant pot
(Loading Image...) where we've
covered the soil with slate chippings and there isn't any food underneath
for it to have.

Digging up the flower bed
(Loading Image...) is, perhaps,
more natural, even if they are making a mess.

The lawn, though, is suffering
(Loading Image...) - they are
just digging and digging until there is nothing left but a bald patch.

Plants in the rockery/water feature are also suffering
(Loading Image...) - again, we'd
covered up the planting with slate chippings but they've pecked away until
the chippings (and sometimes the plants themselves!) have been scattered.
They've also been doing this where we've got a membrane underneath the
chippings (Loading Image.../).

I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?

Regards

Philip

--
philip dot colmer at ntlworld dot com
Osprey
2003-08-25 10:27:08 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want worms
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.
The problem is, though, that they are digging in places where we really
would prefer it if they stopped!
Like a plant pot
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig34.gif) where we've
covered the soil with slate chippings and there isn't any food underneath
for it to have.
Digging up the flower bed
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig35.gif) is, perhaps,
more natural, even if they are making a mess.
The lawn, though, is suffering
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig36.gif) - they are
just digging and digging until there is nothing left but a bald patch.
Plants in the rockery/water feature are also suffering
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig37.gif) - again, we'd
covered up the planting with slate chippings but they've pecked away until
the chippings (and sometimes the plants themselves!) have been scattered.
They've also been doing this where we've got a membrane underneath the
chippings (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig38.gif/).
I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?
Hum!
Philip Colmer
2003-08-25 10:28:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
They've also been doing this where we've got a membrane underneath the
chippings (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig38.gif/).
Sorry - the final / shouldn't be there. It should just be
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig38.gif.

--Philip

--
philip dot colmer at ntlworld dot com
larry
2003-08-25 14:23:15 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
snips .....
Post by Philip Colmer
Regards
Philip
--
philip dot colmer at ntlworld dot com
A lot of what they are eating are probably garden "pests". We are more
than happy for the birds to root around in the garden - we use almost no
"chemicals" yet have little trouble from slugs, snails, earwigs, aphids,
caterpillars, etc.

I sit back and enjoy watching the birds, happy in the knowledge they are
saving you time and money.
--
Larry Stoter
Malcolm Ogilvie
2003-08-25 14:27:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
Blackbirds don't use bird feeders. They will take food from the tops of
birdtables, but they can't hang from feeders like other birds and anyway
don't particularly feed on seed and rarely if ever peanuts.
Post by Philip Colmer
We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want worms
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.
True. They both take a wide variety of invertebrates from plants and the
soil.
Post by Philip Colmer
The problem is, though, that they are digging in places where we really
would prefer it if they stopped!
Like a plant pot
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig34.gif) where we've
covered the soil with slate chippings and there isn't any food underneath
for it to have.
They don't know there isn't any food until they look and if they keep
returning then they are finding food, even if you can't see it.
Post by Philip Colmer
Digging up the flower bed
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig35.gif) is, perhaps,
more natural, even if they are making a mess.
Yes.
Post by Philip Colmer
The lawn, though, is suffering
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig36.gif) - they are
just digging and digging until there is nothing left but a bald patch.
The only reason that there is repeated digging in that patch is because
there is food there, quite possibly associated with the paving stones,
e.g. ants. Or if not with the stones, then consider that they are taking
grubs from among the roots of the grass which could well kill the grass
if they didn't!
Post by Philip Colmer
Plants in the rockery/water feature are also suffering
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig37.gif) - again, we'd
covered up the planting with slate chippings but they've pecked away until
the chippings (and sometimes the plants themselves!) have been scattered.
They've also been doing this where we've got a membrane underneath the
chippings (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig38.gif/).
Slate chippings make ideal cool and damp homes for a wide variety of
invertebrates. The birds know this and are behaving accordingly. The
presence of the membrane doesn't stop there being invertebrates between
it and the chippings.
Post by Philip Colmer
I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?
Err, reduce the number and extent of homes for invertebrates! Your
photographs of the slate chipping areas show absolutely ideal bug
havens, and the birds are taking full advantage and reducing the number
of potentially harmful garden pests.
--
Malcolm
Philip Colmer
2003-08-26 17:35:31 UTC
Permalink
Post by Malcolm Ogilvie
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
Blackbirds don't use bird feeders. They will take food from the tops of
birdtables, but they can't hang from feeders like other birds and anyway
don't particularly feed on seed and rarely if ever peanuts.
I didn't make myself very clear in the original posting - we've got a tray
underneath the feeder that catches anything dropped by the finches & tits.

That said, I can appreciate that blackbirds & starlings might not
particularly *like* seed. Any suggestions on what I can feed them, or should
I just leave them to forage?
Post by Malcolm Ogilvie
Post by Philip Colmer
The lawn, though, is suffering
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/philip.colmer/garden/fig36.gif) - they are
just digging and digging until there is nothing left but a bald patch.
The only reason that there is repeated digging in that patch is because
there is food there, quite possibly associated with the paving stones,
e.g. ants.
We suspect that it is ants.

I appreciate the other comments made in your reply. I realised in retrospect
that some people might have thought that I was being unreasonable towards
the birds. I wasn't really - we truly do appreciate the wildlife that comes
& visits our garden. We can live with soil and slate chippings being tossed
around, but it is rather concerning to buy a new plant on Saturday, plant it
among the rocks in the water feature and then have the birds unbury it and
toss it into the water feature today :-(

It may be that there is something that they've found in that particular nook
and we'll have to try somewhere else to put the plant.

C'est la vie, I guess :-)

--Philip
Mike Humberston
2003-08-27 00:48:14 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
That said, I can appreciate that blackbirds & starlings might not
particularly *like* seed. Any suggestions on what I can feed them, or should
I just leave them to forage?
Starlings will eat a very wide range of food but particularly suet or fat cakes,
peanuts (which they will extract from mesh feeders) and sweet fruit such as
sultanas. They will also rapidly demolish meal worms.

Blackbirds will take fruit, e.g pears, sultanas and meal worms and earthworms.

However, they will still forage. Blackbirds seem to particularly like foraging
in leaf litter. Starlings will still dig in lawns for larvae and pupae.
--
Mike Humberston
Barnes, London

WARNING: Spam trap in operation. Send any e-mail reply to mike, not oblivion.
sw
2003-08-27 05:42:53 UTC
Permalink
[-]
Post by Malcolm Ogilvie
Blackbirds don't use bird feeders. They will take food from the tops of
birdtables, but they can't hang from feeders like other birds and anyway
don't particularly feed on seed and rarely if ever peanuts.
FWIW there are is at least one pair of blackbirds that regularly (and
frequently in the winter) feed on something in the tray of spilt seed
under my large feeder (CJWildbird Hi-Energy No Mess).
This is exactly the setup we've got - a feeder with a large catcher tray
underneath and the same food. The non-feeder birds do seem to get on with it
OK. Our robin doesn't like the larger birds though. It is fun watching the
birds queue up in the apple tree to gain access to the feeder :-)
I don't see the queue, as most of it is in a medium-size field maple
(and I'm supposed to be working, anyway). I can *hear* it, though,
especially the goldfinches. I soemtimes can't believe there was a time
when they ignored the main feeder and I bought a special niger feeder to
lure them in...

I scatter some feed on the ground occasionally, as I've never seen a
dunnock on the tray, and some birds (such as chaffinch) seem to prefer
to avoid the competition on the feeder.

regards
sarah
--
Think of it as evolution in action.
Tony Parkinson
2003-08-25 16:17:35 UTC
Permalink
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other with
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want worms
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.
I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
sw
2003-08-25 17:57:07 UTC
Permalink
Post by Tony Parkinson
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other
with
Post by Philip Colmer
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want
worms
Post by Philip Colmer
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.
I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/

regards
sarah
--
Think of it as evolution in action.
Tony Parkinson
2003-08-25 18:08:55 UTC
Permalink
Post by sw
Post by Tony Parkinson
Post by Philip Colmer
We've got two bird feeders in our garden - one with seed and the other
with
Post by Philip Colmer
peanuts. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to satisfy the
larger birds :-(
We've now got at least one blackbird & starling that want to go round
digging up bits of the garden. Fair enough, you might think, they want
worms
Post by Philip Colmer
and the like - you can't stop them from doing that.
I appreciate that birds want to feed themselves, but is there anything we
can do to reduce the damage they are doing?
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
You can buy dried mealworms now which are already dead
sw
2003-08-27 05:42:52 UTC
Permalink
[-]
Post by Tony Parkinson
Post by sw
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
You can buy dried mealworms now which are already dead
A kind thought, but my conscience still pricks me. I must have grown
soft with age, as I used to keep mealworm colonies to feed all manner of
things!

regards
sarah
--
Think of it as evolution in action.
sw
2003-08-27 05:42:54 UTC
Permalink
Post by sw
Post by Tony Parkinson
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
Doesn't the birds' delight make up for feeling sorry for the meal worms? ;)
No... I'm programmed to feel sorry for the underdog. Or in this case,
worm :-)

Having said that, hospitality does take precedence -- when friends who
stayed with us brought their chickens, I gave the chickens a shovel-full
of compost each morning for breakfast.

regards
sarah
--
Think of it as evolution in action.
Malcolm Ogilvie
2003-08-27 06:11:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by sw
Post by sw
Post by Tony Parkinson
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
Doesn't the birds' delight make up for feeling sorry for the meal worms? ;)
No... I'm programmed to feel sorry for the underdog. Or in this case,
worm :-)
Having said that, hospitality does take precedence -- when friends who
stayed with us brought their chickens, I gave the chickens a shovel-full
of compost each morning for breakfast.
What a sacrifice! Did the chickens repay you with any eggs during their
stay?
--
Malcolm
sw
2003-08-29 06:48:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by Malcolm Ogilvie
Post by sw
Post by sw
Post by Tony Parkinson
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
Doesn't the birds' delight make up for feeling sorry for the meal worms? ;)
No... I'm programmed to feel sorry for the underdog. Or in this case,
worm :-)
Having said that, hospitality does take precedence -- when friends who
stayed with us brought their chickens, I gave the chickens a shovel-full
of compost each morning for breakfast.
What a sacrifice! Did the chickens repay you with any eggs during their
stay?
I seem to recall they did. And I did enjoy watching their foraging
activities -- not precisely clever, but certainly alert. They also
dismantled old logs in their search for interesting food (grain was
provided).


regards
sarah
--
Think of it as evolution in action.
Mike Humberston
2003-08-28 19:45:50 UTC
Permalink
Post by sw
Post by sw
Post by Tony Parkinson
How about feeding them mealworms and/or earthworms on the bird table ? ?
I tried that once and felt so sorry for the mealworms/earthworms that I
haven't done it since. It's not fair -- they only want to grow up to be
beetles :-/
Doesn't the birds' delight make up for feeling sorry for the meal worms? ;)
No... I'm programmed to feel sorry for the underdog. Or in this case,
worm :-)
Meal worms can be very useful for winning the confidence of some birds. Over
the past couple of weeks I've been able to get a young Robin - this year's brood
- to perch on my hand to take meal worms. It now jealously guards me as a food
source and drives away another Robin, still in its juvenile plumage, that tries
to come near me to investigate.
--
Mike Humberston
Barnes, London

WARNING: Spam trap in operation. Send any e-mail reply to mike, not oblivion.
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