Sparrows and Meal Worms

[jezlee]

Hello all - I've been putting out meal worms for a couple of years now, ever since I saw a Robin on television eating them out of someone's hand. I haven't been able to train my robins to do that yet (I have a pair living in my garden this year) but what I have noticed is how my little flock of house sparrows (I can have up to 30 in my garden sometimes eating the seeds etc I put out) love the meal worms too! I took this pic yesterday of a male with a juicy worm in his beak. Has anybody else seen their sparrows taking meal worms as readily as the robins, especially from a window feeder? My feeder is just outside the kitchen window where I stand doing the washing up and I often have a succession of male and female house sparrows squabbling with the robins over the worms, less than a couple of feet from where I'm standing. Sometimes it's like watching an airport – one will land and take a worm and there will be two others hovering in mid air, in line, waiting for their turn to land! Great fun!

[Elizabeth B]

Sadly, we've not seen a sparrow here for ages - but we get blue and great tits, robins and a nuthatch taking mealworms from the caged feeder that I can see from the kitchen window.

[jezlee]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth B

Sadly, we've not seen a sparrow here for ages - but we get blue and great tits, robins and a nuthatch taking mealworms from the caged feeder that I can see from the kitchen window.

I'm sorry to hear you haven't seen a sparrow for a while, Elizabeth – they disappeared from my garden here in Wolverhampton also, for a number of years in the late 90's, early to mid 00's, but have now been back with me for the last five or six years now. I have them every day coming to my feeders for seed and now they come every morning with the robins when I put their worms out. If I forget, they will come and sit outside the kitchen,looking right at me, their expression saying "Come on, where ARE those worms, you're late!"

[Elizabeth B]

I call the birds when I put out the mealworms - and they are usually down before I'm back in the kitchen. I have another caged feeder right by the study window, and I sit right next to this when I'm at my computer. The bluetits tend to fly off if I turn my head, but the robins are much bolder. This morning I was rather late putting the mealworms out, and when I came into the study a robin was just standing there, staring at me - so he was fed right away, of course!.

[Kayleigh]

I have noticed the sparrows finding caterpillars from my garden I think to feed their young are the sparrows eating the meal worms or flying off with them.

[jezlee]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

I have noticed the sparrows finding caterpillars from my garden I think to feed their young are the sparrows eating the meal worms or flying off with them.

Hi Kayleigh - I think the sparrows seem to be eating them themselves, but the robins (and I'm sure I have a pair visiting) very often will fly off after taking a worm, and always in the same direction, so I think they may well have young in a nest nearby. I saw a male sparrow on the lawn this morning with a few strands of dried grass in his beak, so I'm presuming he was in the process of building a nest, although it does seem a little late for that!

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by jezlee

Hi Kayleigh - I think the sparrows seem to be eating them themselves, but the robins (and I'm sure I have a pair visiting) very often will fly off after taking a worm, and always in the same direction, so I think they may well have young in a nest nearby. I saw a male sparrow on the lawn this morning with a few strands of dried grass in his beak, so I'm presuming he was in the process of building a nest, although it does seem a little late for that!

My sparrows were collecting grass yesterday so was a female blackbird who I think has 2 chicks so I am confused as what that is about.

[jezlee]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

My sparrows were collecting grass yesterday so was a female blackbird who I think has 2 chicks so I am confused as what that is about.

Very strange - perhaps they were both just doing running repairs on their already constructed nests?

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by jezlee

Very strange - perhaps they were both just doing running repairs on their already constructed nests?

Could have been..

[actionfinch]

great little picture....

a month or so ago i had a handful of sparrows in my front garden , my window feeder is on the front window, but i never noticed any going on mine.. even though i put dried mealies in it...