Where they go?

[mk1noz]

Hi all it's been an interesting winter. In the last year I dug out a pond and watched that take hold with new wild life moving in - frogs, water boatman, damson flies etc. I'm hoping they all return again this year. Then I started putting food out for the birds - not that there was any to start! Then came the magpies shortley followed by some jackdaws and a couple of doves/wood pigeons. Then I invested in a bird table in November - wow, within two weeks came the black birds then a robbin then just before the snow this year I had seen two black caps and dunnocks a starlin and another I didn't reconise. Since the snow has gone all I have only seen the two black birds and the robbin.

Can anyone explain why the others should just vanish over night or has anyone experienced the same?

I can see pleanty flying overhead and hear other birds in the background but never in the garden.

The food is always fresh and a chioice of pleanty - differant seads, pellets, meal worms, fat balls etc. A few hedges/ trees to sit and be safe in.

I look forward to your ideas and thoughts

[darrenm]

a lot of bird species that use them will only come to bird tables and feeders when the weather is very cold and food is in very short supply and their fear of humans and houses lessens out of hunger. You can take some comfort in knowing that you provided food when it was most needed.

[artdemole]

Plenty of visitors to my feeder come and go.See lots at back on grass outside of fence which is near paddock.I am in minetes walk of countryside ie camerton valley.Sometimes nowt t see on feeder as they are doing their natural thing in the woods and fields.But they'l be back...

[darrenm]

it may also take some species time to get accustomed to being fed and confident enough to feed when the weather is not very cold.

I found this with a House Sparrow population that lives locally and for the first year or so i would only get the odd one or two visiting but i knew that at the end of my road was a large population of House Sparrow. Gradually their numbers have built up over the last few years on my feeding station and during the very cold snap of December and January i have had about twenty feeding but like you mk1noz they have now all virtually deserted over the last week or so but i assume this is because they are getting food elsewhere.

It dosnt bother me beacause i still have visiting Dunnock, Blue and Great Tit's, a Robin, at least a couple of Blackcap, Blackbirds, Collard Doves, Wood Pigeon. These however also took a while to build up confidence to come and feed on a regular basis. My only hope is that when i move later in the year that someone else will continue to feed them