Please help my Robins!

[jezlee]

Hi everyone - I wonder if anyone can help me? I recently bought some live mealworms, as I have a pair of Robins living in my garden and I know how much they love them. The only trouble is, whenever I put any mealworms out, they are always scoffed my a flock of starlings before the robins have had a look in! I have tried several ways of presenting them - in a dish on the floor, hanging in a little tub off a twig of a tree, in a yoghurt pot on top of a bamboo cane stuck in to the lawn - but it doesn't matter, the starlings always get them in the end!

Bar putting the dish containing them in some sort of cage, with gaps large enough to let a robin in, but too small to let a starling in, is there anything else I can try?

[witham]

I would think the cage is the only option having had a similar experience, making sure it's big enough that the pesky Starlings can't reach the mealworms by poking their heads in through the holes, but there again it's amazing at just how small a hole they can squeeze through as I've also found out

[dmclean2]

Hi!,
I bought a Mealworm feeder and for the same reason as you , for the robins and blue tits, and great tits, I lowered the top about 4 times to stop the starlings getting in, until a racing snake couldn't even get under the top ,
Iv'e given up on that one just now , and will get some small mesh sheet and make a box so that small birds can get in but not the bigger ones , they get enough at the other stations , e; bird table and seed feeders,
Duncan

[Astra]

I think you will have to resort to the cage idea as the starlings will demolish a dish in seconds.

I have tried three types:

a caged worm feeder from www.gardenbird.com - looks like this:



A multifeeder from CJ wildbird foods, using the supplied cage bars and adapted to be totally starling-proof with a small bowl inside like this:



You have to drill a hole in the bowl for the brass rod to go through and secure it at the bottom with some plasticine to stop it from wobbling, but the birds like this feeder the best.


Or finally a small bowl placed inside the feeder guardian that CJ wildbird foods sell for use with their suetcakes.
Looks like this:



Robins can access all three feeders but out of them all I prefer the modified multifeeder because the plastic roof keeps the worms dry in the rain, and there's nothing worse than wet worms!!

[Astra]

A Happy Robin!

[Elean0r]

Brilliant ideas.

Has anybody has any success making their own feeders?

[dmclean2]

Yes,
I made a small mealworm feeder from a large clear yoghurt type pot with a domed lid, and a 7" length of 4mm studding,
the bottom of the pot was secured between 2 nuts and the lid is able to screw up or down the studding, again with a nut top of lid and below the lid,
good atempt, just wish the starlings would leave it alone ,
Now that iv'e seen those photos I will be able to adapt the bought mealworm feeder with some small guage mesh,
Cheers,...Duncan

[witham]

did you use any sticky back plastic, I'm sure I might have seen you on Blue Peter

[Gill Catton]

Bear in mind though that whereas robin numbers are pretty stable nationally, starling numbers have plummeted - over 50% decline in the last 25 years so they perhaps need a little help too noisy little hooligans that they are

[ChrisJB]

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

Bear in mind though that whereas robin numbers are pretty stable nationally, starling numbers have plummeted - over 50% decline in the last 25 years so they perhaps need a little help too noisy little hooligans that they are

An excellent point this. I have just tried live mealworms for the first time in the past couple of weeks and also, the starlings 'demolish' them at an alarming rate of knots. But, in view of what Gill has said, I'm just letting them get on with it.
If the 'nice' robins and blackbirds want the juicy mealworms, well they will just have to get up earlier than the starlings!

Regards, Chris

[jezlee]

Thanks for all the ideas, people - I shall investigate those caged feeders!

And I quite agree with Gill about Starlings - but I put lots of food out on the bird table and on a ground feeder that the starlings eat, and also I have a large hanging cage filled with fat balls which the Starlings usually have the lion's share of, so I don't feel they will be deprived if I can stop them from pinching all the mealworms!

[DuncanE]

I was gonna post a similar question. My starling "infestation" started a week after i was feeding the robins mealworms. I wouldn't mind so much but the starlings take all of the mealwoms in one go! And complain at me when they've eaten them all. Whats more they are nowhere near me as i place the worms out, but when my back is turned they're there! Starlings in Bicester must have teleportation abilities.

I think I'll make a roof over my homemade mealworm tray (a plastic birdfeeder water tray with holes in) with another tray on top adjusted to the right height, or the mesh method as mentioned.

[jezlee]

I tried a new feeder yesterday of my own design – I took a bamboo cane from the garden and a small yoghurt pot. I put a hole in the bottom of the pot and pushed the cane through. Then I found an old plastic drip dish that used to be under plant pots, put a hole in this and pushed the cane through, leaving just enough gap between the two for a robin to get in. At first the robins sussed what what going on and were in and out eating the mealworms. Then the first of the starlings arrived. It was amusing to see them fly down and literally "hover" over the feeder, looking for a way to get at the worms. Eventually one landed on the lawn next to it, then literally flew up a couple of feet, gripped the cane with one foot, used the other to pull the edge of the yoghurt pot downwards until he could get his beak in and pinch a couple of worms. Of course, once one had done it, all the others arrived and followed suit until ALL the worms had gone again!

I do say I have to admire their intelligence and tenacity to find a way to the worms, whatever the obstacles I put before them ...

They're like the squirrels of the bird world!!