Cowbirds at my bird feeder!!

addiebee

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Been reading up on this brood parasite. Anyone familiar with them? A male or two showed up at my bird feeder today and made pigs of themselves and then while in the tree, bullied some of the smaller birds.

Grrrrrrr!!!!! I don't want to feed them. Sorry, but they take a toll on the smaller song birds.
 

strange_wings

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Yep, those and starlings. That's why I only feed when I have to. Once it gets warmer cowbirds and starlings move in... now if I could keep them out of MewMew and Boo's food bowls - I really don't want them eating trashing eating birds. (the starlings and cowbirds around here spend a lot of time around fast food places and trash cans)

Maybe look at different mixes? Little birds like thistle and the thistle feeders don't suit larger birds at all.
 
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addiebee

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

Yep, those and starlings. That's why I only feed when I have to. Once it gets warmer cowbirds and starlings move in... now if I could keep them out of MewMew and Boo's food bowls - I really don't want them eating trashing eating birds. (the starlings and cowbirds around here spend a lot of time around fast food places and trash cans)

Maybe look at different mixes? Little birds like thistle and the thistle feeders don't suit larger birds at all.
I did read that they like mixed seed. But so so the Chickadees, Titmice and Nuthatches. (LOOVE the nuthatches... the way they creep down the tree trunk with their heads up. It is just too cute!)

I do have a finch sock up, too, and I saw what I think are female goldfinches using it.

This is supposed to be a win-win... the songbirds get some vittles and the cats get some entertainment.
 

strange_wings

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I remember Nuthatches! They are cute little things. And the Chickadees up there can be surprisingly bold, I was able to get one to take seed out of my hand once. Other times they would come within a couple feet of me. The boldest birds around here are just the doves - particularly my creepy stalker dove.

All I can say is try other types of feeders.
 

MoochNNoodles

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I had them here last year. I don't have a feeder up yet this year. But one day last year DH and I were in our bedroom. He looked out the window and I kid you not there was a cowbird on the feeder knocking tons and tons of seed out for a whole flock of them on the ground! They were going crazy!!
 

littleraven7726

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Don't put out anything with peanuts or sunflower seeds if you want to get rid of them. That worked for me.

We had to take down our seed feeder and go back to compressed seed squares & suet squares. The birds were making such a mess we were getting a huge rabbit and other rodent problem.
The suet and seed squares are less messy. The downside is until they finish off one of them I can't put out the finch square. We have mostly sparrows right now and some finches.
 

cheap sushi

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Well.... a bb gun might help out with your situation but Im guessing you would have to be sitting in front of the feeder the entire day.
 

gailc

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Don't put any corn in your birdfeeder. I saw a grackle/starling at the the bigger feeder this week. Its been windy so I haven't been filling any except for the finch feeders.

I usually stop adding any corn to my mix about mid march as not to attract them to my feeders. I think once they are there their going to keep checking the feeders out. They also appear to be a transient bird but still hang around for a month.

Sometimes not filling the feeders with the bigger seeds for a few days seem to keep them away as well.
 
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addiebee

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I also posted on a bird forum and it was suggested that I use safflower seeds. The cardinals and other songbirds will eat that but grackles, starlings and cowbirds are not that fond of it.

I did have seed suet box up but I think raccoons got it ... it disappeared overnight off the hook!

And the squirrels devoured the pressed seed bell.

This morning , a big brown squirrel did amazing acrobatics to get to the feeder... keeping his hind claws dug into the tree.. he stretched and twisted until he got his front paws on the tippy edge of the feeder and stretched out his neck where he could nibble the seeds and peanuts there. Quite the contortionist... I had to chase him off several times.

As to sitting there with a BB gun, well... cowbirds are protected under the migratory bird act -- however in Michigan and a few other places, you can get permits to kill them since they have helped to decimate some of the rare native birds, like the Kirtland's Warbler, with their practice of brood parasitism.
 

dparkstudio

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Cowbirds, starlings and grackles! I put out a small feeder for the songbirds and the cowbirds ate the thistles. I finally just took in all the feeders (I have four). I don't know what else to do. If you have a solution (other than my neighbor that says to shoot them), please email me. The last ten years I have had only songbirds and doves. This is terrible!
 

MoochNNoodles

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This thread is 3 years old now; but I'm still having problems with the "pig" birds I call them.  Some kind of blackbird mostly.  I've trained my kids to knock on the window when they see them at the feeder.  It helps only so much.  The feeder I have out is hanging right from the eve of the house; right in front of the cat tree.  The cats couldn't care less!
 
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