Bizarre history at my feeders (1 Viewer)

First, a big hello from a first poster!

I hope somebody out there can solve my conundrum.

I have a big hanging feeder just outside my window from where I eat so that I can dine with the birds....I fill it with black sunflower seeds as per recommendation of the wonderful owner of the local birdfeeder store in Massachusetts.

I also have a hanging suet feeder just next to it, all in front of a large bamboo grove that gets filled with birds.

In past years I have had large numbers of diverse species joining me there....cardinals, jays, titmice, chicadees, finches, juncos, woodpeckers, many others....you name it. And...oh yeah....sparrows.

This winter that all changed. Now 80-90% of what I get are house sparrows, and they were eating me out of house and home. I have read such awful things about them and their aggressiveness but I cannot bring myself to dislike them and would never engage in sparrowcide like I read about in birder sites online....I do find them entertaining.

So that was bad enough...down from a panoply of species to almost all sparrows, eating me out of house and home. And the suet feeder, which was my favorite spot for birds in the past, now goes almost entirely ignored.

But then, mysteriously about two weeks ago, even the sparrows disappeared. Whereas I was filling the feeder with seed every other day in the past, now it goes a week or more. All I can think is that perhaps a neighbor opened a more inviting restaurant than mine as the neighborhood gentrifies.

So my questions:
1. Is my theory about loss of visitors likely, and if so, how do I keep up with the Joneses?
2. Did the sparrows scare off or kill my other fine feathered friends, and if so, how do I bring them back (nonviolently) ?
3. What other factors can be in play...eg what's going on here?


Thanks in advance for your indulgence,
anitje.

Assuming you haven't had a major eco change locally, no clear cutting, etc, it's probably the weather this year. I find some years are more mixed than others in terms of species myself and this season, which has been bitterly cold since mid December, I basically get only three species (chickadees, northern junco and purple finch) as opposed to a possible dozen or so varieties in other years. I know that the whole east coast has been unusually cold as well, it could be that all of your less cold friendly birds (which are most of the birds you name) have flown to a warmer clime- easy for them to do after all.

Ruff said:

Assuming you haven't had a major eco change locally, no clear cutting, etc, it's probably the weather this year. I find some years are more mixed than others in terms of species myself and this season, which has been bitterly cold since mid December, I basically get only three species (chickadees, northern junco and purple finch) as opposed to a possible dozen or so varieties in other years. I know that the whole east coast has been unusually cold as well, it could be that all of your less cold friendly birds (which are most of the birds you name) have flown to a warmer clime- easy for them to do after all.

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Thanks, Ruff!

I didn't know that they did that. I thought they just toughed it out.

Any explanation for why they all disappeared, even the sparrows, a week or two ago? My yard went from being an avian paradise to Rachel Carson's worst nightmare. I filled the feeders two days ago and no evidence of even a house sparrow since.

And no, no significant environmental changes. Plus no new cats that I am aware of.

Should I change what I am feeding them? The bird lady says black sunflower seeds are the best, and they have always done the trick for me before.

anitje said:

Thanks, Ruff!

I didn't know that they did that. I thought they just toughed it out.

Any explanation for why they all disappeared, even the sparrows, a week or two ago? My yard went from being an avian paradise to Rachel Carson's worst nightmare. I filled the feeders two days ago and no evidence of even a house sparrow since.

And no, no significant environmental changes. Plus no new cats that I am aware of.

Should I change what I am feeding them? The bird lady says black sunflower seeds are the best, and they have always done the trick for me before.

Click to expand...

Could it have been that famous cyclone bomb the East Coast experienced? Birds may get some additional calories from a feeder but most of their intake is said to be from wild sources. Mostly though, its my belief and observation that the movement of birds and the reasons for their group presence or absence is known only to them; we can only guess at them.

I find that larger birds like mixed seed that includes regular sunflower seeds, but that may just be due to the ease of use of my various feeders for blue jays and cardinals. Black oil sunflower seed is the best all round, I have no doubt.

Ruff said:

Could it have been that famous cyclone bomb the East Coast experienced? Birds may get some additional calories from a feeder but most of their intake is said to be from wild sources. Mostly though, its my belief and observation that the movement of birds and the reasons for their group presence or absence is known only to them; we can only guess at them.

I find that larger birds like mixed seed that includes regular sunflower seeds, but that may just be due to the ease of use of my various feeders for blue jays and cardinals. Black oil sunflower seed is the best all round, I have no doubt.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestions!

I thought that it might have had to do with the extreme weather as well, though if my memory serves me well I think the sparrows kept coming through that stretch, or most of it anyway. And the surrounding bamboo offers what I would think would be pretty good protection from the elements.

Hi Anitje i would check the seeds to see if they are off, this has happened a few times in my garden and always because of bad seeds. When the feeders are restocked with good seeds, the sparrows returns.

There is always the possibility that a neighbor has a new pet cat that is patrolling the gardens and scaring off the birds?

Ohjertenes said:

Hi Anitje i would check the seeds to see if they are off, this has happened a few times in my garden and always because of bad seeds. When the feeders are restocked with good seeds, the sparrows returns.

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Interesting idea, thanks!

How can you tell if the seeds are bad? They look ok.

Also, the feeders can get clogged with old decaying seeds at the bottom - so worth giving the feeder a clean.