Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil Bradby
Hi
I know it's a bit early to be thinking about winter, but for a while now
I've been planning on getting a bird table this year. I hadn't really
thought there could be much of a down-side to this until I was chatting
to a friend about it recently. She said that in her experience the birds
will scatter seed on the ground which attracts rats and mice. Plus the
amount of bird muck will be phenomenal.
Are these really going to be a big problem? I mean, lots of people keep
bird tables despite these issues... Plus there are a few cats in the
neighbourhood which I don't imagine will let a rat colony flourish.
Does the type of seed you put down make a difference? Or whether the
table is on paving or a lawn? Thanks for any thoughts.
PB
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I would not have described the amount of bird muck as 'phenomenal' by any stretch of the imagination.
Birds appreciate feeding most of the year - winter, obviously, then spring when they're working hard to produce young,, summer when they're moulting and don't want to be spending too long in the open getting food. Autumn is possibly the least important time, with an abundance of natural food.
You can divide birds in two ways, ground feeders vs ''feeder' feeders, and insect feeders vs seed feeders (you need a tougher beak to crack seeds).
If you have a hanging feeder, you will attract blue tits, great tits and coal tits, and possibly long tailed tits, greenfinches, chaffinches, house sparrows, maybe goldfinches (who are showing signs of moving on from the very fine nyjer seed to hulled sunflower seeds), if you're very lucky bullfinches.
Tits are the main insect feeders, and they'll appreciate fat cakes (as will starlings)
Robins, blackbirds and dunnocks are ground feeders, and will feed from a table. as will wood pigeons, collared doves and magpies. Blackbirds are fruit eaters and will appreciate sultanas and raisins ((but get the ones sold for birds as I believe the human ones are usually rolled in oil). Robins are insect eaters, and you can add dried mealworms or tiny scraps of cheese.
If the table is on a lawn, the mower will take care of any germinating bird seed.
The most important thing (apart from siting it where the birds are happy) is to site it where you can see it from where you often sit in the house. And keep a small pair of binoculars handy - it is really interesting to have close up views, and watch, for example, a bird carefully de-husking a sunflower seed.
They'll take about three weeks to find your new source of food, so have patience and don't give up.