No shortage of sparrows here

[alora]

Any advice on how to attract birds, other than sparrows, to my bird feeder? Thought there was meant to be a shortage of sparrows. Not where I live! They go through a large bird feeder in less than two days - costing me a fortune. Other visitors are doves and pigeons - really funny seeing a pigeon trying to balance on the feeder. Only seen one blue tit.

Are sparrows putting off other birds? I put another two feeders up in other parts of the garden - but I just get sparrows. Don't get me wrong, I love them but would like to see different birds.

[rossy]

hello alora and welcome, how long have you had your feeders up ? i bought a feeding station , and have only fat balls in 3 feeders,plus a tray of mixed seed, and water, then 2 suet blocks, 1 lot of nuts,on 1 washing line, then 7 feeders with seeds of which only 1 contains sunflower hearts , on another washing line,also made a small table with mixed seeds ,what i think you will find is once the birds find the food , more will appear, but i placed the feeders near to bushes , so they can dive for cover if any danger comes, just lately great spotted woodpeckers are in on the suet blocks, along with blue tits, great tits, coal tits, collard doves, wood pigeons, dunnocks, blackbirds, starlings ,an army of house sparrows,jackdaws, magpies, you can always reposition your feeders, patience is required, and i was like you at first but now its lovely to watch, rossy.

[aeshna5]

A few weeks back I went upto the north-east to go to the Farnes. We stayed in Seahouses for a few nights + I was amazed at the huge numbers of House Sparrows everywhere, including a flock of well over 100 over a field, but over house seemed to have dozens.

My numbers have declined over the last year or so here in the west London suburbs.

[nightshade]

Originally Posted by alora

Any advice on how to attract birds, other than sparrows, to my bird feeder? Thought there was meant to be a shortage of sparrows. Not where I live! They go through a large bird feeder in less than two days - costing me a fortune. Other visitors are doves and pigeons - really funny seeing a pigeon trying to balance on the feeder. Only seen one blue tit.

Are sparrows putting off other birds? I put another two feeders up in other parts of the garden - but I just get sparrows. Don't get me wrong, I love them but would like to see different birds.

You are very lucky to have Sparrows, I had to alter my garden to get them back
Try seeing the attraction in these little clowns, see who is friends with who there is a whole social system in these apparently random mobs.
If you have room try feeding other birds separately away from the bustling crowd but make sure the Sparrows have enough to keep them busy, a dust bath, a birdbath.

[mrbright]

i love my sparrows, each day i seem to get more fledglings, they are a great source of enjoyment. you're right nightshade trying to fathom out the hierarchy is great fun. pretentious young males fighting for the no1 spot,young females flirting . my world would be a sad place without my sparrows.

[alora]

I don't think I can actually afford to get more feeding stations, as the sparrows are costing me so much. The feeder is outside my dining room window in a lilac tree and yes they all congregate in there, work out who is going to go first etc. But they are so messy at feeding. A lot of the seeds fall to the ground, where the pigeons and doves come to clean up. I have to watch where I put the feeders because the seeds take root. I don't mind loads of sun flowers turning up, but the grass seed is a pain as I have to weed it up. When I can afford it I'll try and get some other type of food, as you have, suet and fat balls (that way won't get seed growing in grass) and yes perhaps hang on washing line. Does having a huge flock of sparrows put other birds off? We have so many parrots here at the moment - what a racket!

[nightshade]

A slightly different complexion on things. The tree my Sparrows socialise in is next door, they only come into the garden to feed. You seem to have a social tree as well. I bought a 3mtr. post and screwed brackets onto it then set it up across the garden away from the tree feeders but still with handy cover within 1-2mtrs. away. I stopped feeding at the tree and started at the post within a few days they had moved and the mess was reduced and in an area I could clean easily. Food wise I found it to be false economy to buy cheap bird seed as the type of wheat in many of them is too hard for them and they leave it. I buy a sack of sunflower hearts about every two months now there is much less mess and more bird types adore it. There are also peanuts in a mesh holder that Woodpeckers and Long tailed Tits like. I also have a log hung up with holes drilled in itinto which I pack a few nuts and seeds, it is quite surprising what it attracts.
I quite envy you your Parrots in a way, but perhaps not

[SheffieldLass]

My guess it is the type of seed you are giving them that attracts the sparrows but not others. I feed straight seeds rather than a mixture. The sparrows love yellow millet (which is cheap), and hemp (now quite expensive ) , whilst the tits, goldfinches and greenfinches like sunflower. As they are in different feeders it seems to avoid one species dominating all the feeders.

I love my sparrows (tree and house sparrows). I have 50+. They seem to prefer my garden to my neighbours, not quite sure why except that I have more cover, plus ample soil for dust baths plus 3 dishes for bathing. It seems to be their kindergarten. They are great fun to watch ... they copy each other, even the newly fledged have an obsession with feathers and dry bits of grass ... it reminds me of young kids trying on mum's stilettos, trying to act grown up ... My pea plants were initially attacked by the rabbit, but now are under constant attack from the sparrows though, so I'm not going to get any peas this year. They are mere 2 inch long stalks, and as soon as they produce a new leaf the sparrows peck them off. They even peck the beetroot leaves. Hadn't realised how keen they are on their greens!

The other morning I woke to a fluttering at the window and in popped a just-fledged baby sparrow. I think it didn't quite get enough height to reach the gutter. Its mum was anxiously looking in from outside. I guided it back outside, and it shot across to a tree opposite, folllowed by mum. Then it joined its siblings in the next tree along and they cuddled up together, looked very content, and were there for a few hours, dozing, getting fed. I'm sure they are now part of the rowdy kindergarten in my back garden.

[bigdave60dog]

Just enjoy the Spuggies. You are doing a service by feeding them.
You may need to keep them through winter though. When I lived in England in the 90s, Sparrows all but disappeared in a few short years. No-one seemed to know why.
I put up feeders for finches etc. I soon found all of the remaining sparrows in the area were feeding in my garden. 25k+ of grain every week. I did this for a few years and the sparrow poulation gradually built up again. As did their food requirements. I realised that we were surrounded by arable farms which planted, grew, harvested and planted immediately. No aphids on the corn, no insects in fact. no grain spilt anywhere no weeds, no weedseed, no stubble for birds to feed on.
The countryside scenery looked great but there was no wildlife at all other than that on the roadside. Sadly this is true of many areas of Britain nowadays. Seed eating birds have nothing to live on.
At the time to make matters worse the RSPB were advocateing stopping feeding during the breeding season. The only food for spuggies wqas in gardens. They depended on this to keep them through winter. Then just when they needed it most we stopped providing food. At laest this practice has now changed -I think.
Dave

[Littlesparrow]

Ive got sparrows. My bird population seem to take it in turn at the feeders the only squabbles are the black bird or the robin having a go at the magpie. The blackbirds love a slightly soft apple cut in half.