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Upside down thistle feeder question (1 Viewer)

Lady Eagle

Lady Eagle

Well-known member
For about a week I had several pairs of lovely goldfinches at my regular thistle feeder. But I think the house finches and pine siskins have run them off and I want to attract them back.

So I'm going to buy an upside down thistle feeder just for the goldfinches but my question is this: will they still come back if I hang the feeder on the same shepherd's hook as my other feeders? Their upside down feeder will be about 1 1/2 feet to 2 feet away from the other feeders on my station, is this too close for these shy golden birds? Or do I need to hang this feeder somewhere across the yard where I, sadly, won't be able to enjoy them as much?
 
I don't see any problem with hanging the upside down feeder in the same vacinity as your other feeders. The point is, the house finch won't be able to feed from it, only goldfinch can eat upside down. Hope your goldfinch will return!
 
Should work. I don't see A. goldfinches as being the least bit shy. At my feeders the Purple Finches and A. Goldfinches integrate with the other species, all taking turns at the feeders. I don't have House Finches here but when we lived on Vancouver Island we had lots and I don't recall that hey chased off other species.
 
When the Pine Siskins were in town over the winter, the only problem I had was just a general lack of perches. (I have an 8-perch feeder...) Lots of "finch fights", but I didn't see any single species dominate.
 
Thanks for the replies! I bought the upside down feeder and hung it on the feeding station with the other feeders. It's funny watching the house finches trying to use it, but so far I haven't seen any sign of the goldfinches, nor do I hear their voices anymore in the trees. The pine siskins are gone, too, even though I left the other thistle feeder up for them. They must have just moved on...

Here's hoping that the goldies didn't wander off too far from my area, and that they return to me soon!
 
It's possible they just moved somewhere else instead of being ran off, goldfinches are famous for that from what I read.

Common redpolls can hang upside down to get seeds too, as I've found this past winter.
 
My goldfinch and house finches share the same thistle feeder. I've found that the goldfinch are bullies who have scared off my yellow-rumped warblers. I'd like to try the upside down feeder though since I'm not overly fond of house finches.
 
The goldfinches have really been coming and going here lately. They show up for a day or two, then disappear for a week or more. Last year I had several pairs stick around the whole summer, so this is different for me.

I ended up taking down the upside-down thistle feeder because it didn't do well in the rain and humidity. It was fun, however, watching the siskins and goldfinches feeding upside down (I didn't realize siskins could!) and the house finches giving it their best shot!

I've still got the regular thistle feeder out in case the goldies decide to come back (they've been MIA for over a couple of weeks now). The house finches mostly ignore it, preferring the hulled sunflower instead.
 
Lady Eagle said:
The goldfinches have really been coming and going here lately. They show up for a day or two, then disappear for a week or more. Last year I had several pairs stick around the whole summer, so this is different for me.

I ended up taking down the upside-down thistle feeder because it didn't do well in the rain and humidity. It was fun, however, watching the siskins and goldfinches feeding upside down (I didn't realize siskins could!) and the house finches giving it their best shot!

I've still got the regular thistle feeder out in case the goldies decide to come back (they've been MIA for over a couple of weeks now). The house finches mostly ignore it, preferring the hulled sunflower instead.
Click to expand...

Yeah I noticed this also with my Gold Finches just out right leaving for days then coming back but in smaller numbers. maybe they're eating natural foods available now?
 
I haven't seen any goldfinches in weeks, nor have I heard their voices in the area. They may have moved on here, sadly.

I bought a new thistle feeder that will hopefully better withstand the rotten Alberta weather we've been having lately: it's the Birds Choice Magnet Mesh Box feeder. It is bright yellow to hopefully attract back the goldfinches. Because of the rectangular shape surrounded by mesh, it is not as wide as the round ones and I'm hoping that it will help the thistle dry faster when it gets damp.

My previous two thistle feeders (including the upside-down one) are both solid plastic tubes, and they build up condensation and hold in the rain when it gets in. Every time it rains lately, I have to bring in the feeders to dismantle, clean and dry them thoroughly. And it's been raining and storming a lot here!

We had a storm again last night, so I'll have to go outside and see how the new Mesh Box feeder "weathered" it! ;)
 
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