Almost vanished
 

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on
them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same,
it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?
David @ a sunny side of Swansea Bay

Almost vanished
 

David Hill wrote:

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds
on them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the
same, it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just
don't do that. Anyone else had the same?

Not quite as dramatic as that, but certainly inr the last few weeks my
feeders have lasted a week before being emptied whereas prior to that I
was filling them up pretty much every day.

--
Chris

Almost vanished
 

In article , david@abacus-
nurseries.co.uk says...

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on
them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same,
it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?
David @ a sunny side of Swansea Bay

Seen any Sparrow Hawks around?

Neighbour put out a new feeder/seed/mouldy loaf?

I find days when we don't see them for a bit. It seems that
sparrows (of which we have a load this year) tend to come first
thing in the morning, or as soon as I top up the feeders. Tits,
chaffinches and the like appear spasmodically.

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

Almost vanished
 

"David Hill" wrote

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the feeders
suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on them
yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same, it's almost
as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?


Probably a Hawk around, happened to us and then one landed in the garden
clutching a hapless pigeon.
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

Almost vanished
 

On 08/09/2014 17:49, Bob Hobden wrote:
"David Hill" wrote

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on
them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same,
it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do
that.
Anyone else had the same?


Probably a Hawk around, happened to us and then one landed in the garden
clutching a hapless pigeon.
A sparrow hawk is permanent, it buzzes the feeder 2 or 3 times a day and
normally the birds are back in 2 or 3 minutes.
I have been feeding anything up to 200 birds a day, so this sudden lack
of birds is strange.

Almost vanished
 

On 08/09/2014 17:49, Bob Hobden wrote:
"David Hill" wrote

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the feeders
suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on them
yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same, it's almost
as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?

Probably a Hawk around, happened to us and then one landed in the garden
clutching a hapless pigeon.

We sometimes see what I take to be a sparrowhawk swoop past our feeders
and disappear, skimming over next door's hedge. It could do with a few
lessons in wood-pigeon nabbing as it never seems to catch any of the
multitude round here!

--
Sue

Almost vanished
 

On 09/09/2014 12:02, Malcolm wrote:

In article , CT
writes
David Hill wrote:

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds
on them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the
same, it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just
don't do that. Anyone else had the same?

Not quite as dramatic as that, but certainly inr the last few weeks my
feeders have lasted a week before being emptied whereas prior to that I
was filling them up pretty much every day.

What has happened to Chris is a bit sudden, so I would speculate a
sparrowhawk has been paying it too much attention.

However, in your case, a drop off in birds at feeders is quite normal in
late summer as the hedgerows fill up with berries (it's a fine
blackberry year here in western Scotland) while the fields have spilt
grain after the harvest and weed seeds, etc. When the birds have
finished that lot, they'll be back to your feeders, never fear!

I didn't think Tits fed on fruit and grain.

Almost vanished
 

On 2014-09-08 10:53:33 +0000, CT said:

David Hill wrote:

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds
on them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the
same, it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just
don't do that. Anyone else had the same?

Not quite as dramatic as that, but certainly inr the last few weeks my
feeders have lasted a week before being emptied whereas prior to that I
was filling them up pretty much every day.

It's much the same here. I put it down to autumn coming early so seed
heads are available, farmers have harvested, so fields can be gleaned
by birds etc.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon

Almost vanished
 

In article ,
says...

David Hill wrote:

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds
on them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the
same, it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just
don't do that. Anyone else had the same?

Not quite as dramatic as that, but certainly inr the last few weeks my
feeders have lasted a week before being emptied whereas prior to that I
was filling them up pretty much every day.

If either of you have grain crops being harvested locally, or wild-
food sources seeding and ripe for eating, then the local birds you were
feeding in the garden, now have an alternative food source and a
change of menu.

Here's an example of how fast wild birds adapt to a new food source;

Last winter a new tenant farmer next door ploughed and reseeded some
very rough poor hill pasture which (apart from grazing sheep) had been
untouched for decades. 6 weeks ago, he cut a hay crop from the new
grass, and as he cut and baled it, red legged partridges appeared in our
garden for the first time; I'm pretty sure they were scared off the hill
to the relative p[eace and cover here. They tucked in to the wheat I put
down for pheasants and discovered that food rains down from the bird
tables ( seed kicked off by other birds).

I've never seen red leg partridges round here before and to all
appearances they had never seen people either, as the slightest glimpse
of us sent them scurrying off in a panic. But they turned up every day
for food and got used to us. Next thing, they started lining up on the
back step glaring at us through the glass door and tapping their watches
until I went out to feed them. Then I found one of them trailing me
round the garden like a dog, and when I fetched some wheat he took it
from my hand :-)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Red-legged_Partridge

Janet.

Almost vanished
 

In article , david@abacus-
nurseries.co.uk says...

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the
feeders suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on
them yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same,
it's almost as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?
David @ a sunny side of Swansea Bay

Strange, I posted a follow up yesterday morning, but it seems
to have disappeared into the ether!

There are a number of possible causes:

Sparrowhawk, as mentioned elsewhere
Cat sitting under the bushes
Stale food
Someone nearby has put out different/nicer feed (my experience
here)

There is also a time element. Our sparrows are alway here
around 8.30-9.00am and later on in the afternoon(counted 25ish
around the feeders, don't know how many in the ivy and bushes
nearby!). Tits and finches tend to come in 2-3's on and off all
day. Others just occasionally, nuthatches always single,
woodpeckers usually 1 or 2, although when the young were here,
there were two families around and upto 5 birds in the garden
together - although only 1 fed at a time, usually the male
first, then female, the babes in age order.

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

Almost vanished
 

In article ,
says...

On 08/09/2014 17:49, Bob Hobden wrote:
"David Hill" wrote

I don't know what has happened, from having a mass of birds on the feeders
suddenly yesterday there were almost none, I saw less birds on them
yesterday than I had been seeing in 15 mins. today is the same, it's almost
as if they have all migrated, but Tits etc. just don't do that.
Anyone else had the same?

Probably a Hawk around, happened to us and then one landed in the garden
clutching a hapless pigeon.

We sometimes see what I take to be a sparrowhawk swoop past our feeders
and disappear, skimming over next door's hedge. It could do with a few
lessons in wood-pigeon nabbing as it never seems to catch any of the
multitude round here!

Our resident Sparrowhawk won't catch pigeon's round here, there
do not seem to be any, just a pair of collared doves. Round
here they seem to go for the blue tits if posible, occasionally
find clumps of feathers in the garden, and somewhere I've got a
picture of one eating its prey. Also the other week, one got
into the fruit cage (not really sure how), but me and a
neighbour just opened the door wide, went in to the cage and
gently coaxes it towards the door, at which point it flew off
at high speed. Again I've a picture still in the camera I
think.

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales