Bizarre greenfinch behaviour (1 Viewer)

Margaret Mc said:

Yesterday I watched a greenfinch completely destroy a primrose - he systematically pecked all the blossoms from it. He then wandered among other plants on the rockery (none of which he attacked) before flying up onto the feeder! Does anyone have an explanation for this strange act of vandalism!

Margaret

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Mynydd Merlin said:

Hi Margaret,

You don't actually say so in your post but I suspect the primroses were yellow (similar colour to our native UK primrose?). A number of species are known to eat primrose flowers (House Sparrows are notorious for it). I think they are after the nectar that these spring flowers produce. At this time of year the natural 'seed' based food these birds usually eat are in short supply so they go for the energy boost that is provided by nectar rich flowers, even if they can get seed from your feeders?!

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Talon 1 said:

This is correct. I have had mine destroyed by a resident Blackbird but then he does it every year.
He is now waiting for the Bereberis Darwinii to stop flowering so he can wait for those Purple Berries

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lapwing1 said:

I certainly agree. The house sparrows here do exactly the same to primroses we have along a border. At first I thought it was slugs until I actually saw the sparrows doing it as they nest just above the flower border in our eaves.

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