Birds in the garden (1 Viewer)

Can anyone please tell me how i can get different species of birds into my garden? I have the usual sparrow, starlings, pigeons and the same little Robin etc, but I'd love to try and get different breeds in. I have put out nuts and seeds and have even placed a nesting box into the garden, but unfortunately it's the same birds all the time and the Starlings seem to scare the smaller birds away

Would be really grateful for any advice received

Have you tried different types of seeds. Sunflower hearts alone, attract all types, particularly finches (i've found Bullfinches love it).

Nijer seed attracts Goldfinches particularly.

Peanuts for Tits.

Mixed seed for Robins and other ground feeding birds that can be put on a table.

Fat balls for Tits (particularly Long tailed) and especially Woodpeckers and Nuthatches.

Plus make sure the feeders are put in places where there is good escape cover next to it (if you can) and where there is a free area to fly away to. Sometimes its about where you place the feeders (in my own experience), for instance place a fatball where it can be seen over a good area, so peckers flying around in the area have a good chance of seeing it on the way.

hope this helps.

Thanks for the advice Nick. I have peanuts placed in the garden but as of yet i haven't seen a single bird even go near it, I have placed fat ball around the garden, the sparrows like them but the starlings usually chase them off and too be honest I'd like to get more unusual birds than Sparrows anyway. I'll buy different seeds and see if it makes a difference, thanks again

It can take time to attract a variety of birds. For example I put out Niger seed to attract goldfinch, but it took several weeks for them to find it. If larger birds are a problem put some seed into caged feeders which will only allow smaller birds access.

As Nick says, fatballs attract lots of species, particularly all the tits, woodpecker, robins, dunnocks, finches and the like. For table seed buy a good quality mix with little or no wheat.

Persevere and things should improve.

Sid

Sidwithey's suggestion , to keep the starlings from hogging the seeds by surrounding the feeders with a large mesh cage that only the smaller birds can cross is very effective.
Fatballs need to be hung with a tight top cover such as a rain dome. Tits and woodpeckers can cling to the bottom of the ball, starlings and sparrows are much less comfortable doing so.

plant some trees if youve got room. my garden is small but ive crammed in a swedish whitebeam, hornbeam, goat-willow, laurel, hawthorn, buddhlia, field maple, sycamore (grows quick), and some firs to make a thicket. ive also got loads of rotting wood on the ground that attracts insects, and 3 small ponds. when it was just grass nothing came, but now i get sparrowhawks, blackcaps, whitethroats, garden warblers, etc. even a little egret almost touched down one day. once a kingfisher sat on the washing-line, and during autumn migration i even had a wood-warbler drop in. i can go on, but you get the picture. and i live on a housing estate in a town. trouble is, it also attracts all the neighbourhood cats!!!!