No birds ever come to my bird houses/feeders! (1 Viewer)

pineappledood

Member

• Jun 21, 2012

• #1

Sooo i love birds and i love making things so i made some bird houses but bought some bird feeders and hung them outside in the front yard on the deck. but no birds were coming so i decided to give it more time but still no birds! some more time went by but birds just werent coming! WHY?! we have a big tree in the middle of the yard in front of the actual house (not the deck). and i hung the stuff on the deck so i could see it out the window. last year my mom had a plant hanging up by the window and a bird nested in it but when i hung a bird house there nothing! what is going on? how do i get them dang birds to nest and feed??

thanks.

 

Brian2

Well-known member

• Jun 21, 2012

• #2

you need to give them options to nest, they'll decide then which option is the safe one.
as for feeders...it's probably down to food choice. think about what birds are nearby and put food out with that in mind.My father in law usd to moan that he didn't get Goldfinch at his feeders but all he put out was bread and peanuts, when I introduced him to Thistle seed guess what...he got Goldfinch. Best of luck with it

 

pineappledood

Member

• Jun 21, 2012

• #3

well i got a finch sock with nyger seed inside and how can i make sure the birds think the house is safe? and one more question (lol) how often do birds nest/make nests? because if they only nest in the spring/early spring then i wont bother putting a bird house up right now.

 

Brian2

Well-known member

• Jun 21, 2012

• #4

I think you'd be better putting a couple up now so they get used to them, then in spring hopefuilly they'll chose one...keep it away from the weather..they won't want it in direct sun but won't want local predators to find it either. As for the seed try others like sunflower hearts .(good thing here is they eat the whole seed so no mess)

how about putting out some suet cake or live food (worms etc)...try all sorts until they take something then stick with it.
For sure there will be birds out there waiting for a little help and remember they need less help when the plants are seeding than in winter when they're not.
I have ten Goldfinch in the garden right now as the chicks have fledged

 

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joespy

Well-known member

• Jun 21, 2012

• #5

pineappledood said:

Sooo i love birds and i love making things so i made some bird houses but bought some bird feeders and hung them outside in the front yard on the deck. but no birds were coming so i decided to give it more time but still no birds! some more time went by but birds just werent coming! WHY?! we have a big tree in the middle of the yard in front of the actual house (not the deck). and i hung the stuff on the deck so i could see it out the window. last year my mom had a plant hanging up by the window and a bird nested in it but when i hung a bird house there nothing! what is going on? how do i get them dang birds to nest and feed??

thanks.

Click to expand...

Try moving the feeders to an area where the birds can feel "safe", where they can retreat to if a predator appears, ideally near bushes or trees. They'll feel exposed out on your decking if there's no cover to dive into.....and try to avoid net bags with feed in ......they can get snagged.
Yes, they do nest once a year, in spring but they need to get used to a new nest box so leave them there as Brian2 says. Southeast facing is good and under branches etc to avoid direct sunlight, so the box doesn't overheat
Cheers Joe :t:

 

Last edited: Jun 21, 2012

pineappledood

Member

• Jun 22, 2012

• #6

Brian2- what kind of bird is that a picture of? i dont think its a goldfinch... is it? and it is spring here already. actually its passed spring technically. lol
Joespy- thanks for the tips!
i just asked my mom if we could get some bushes to plant in front of out deck so then i could put the feeders above and beside them.

 

Sherpa

Very active member ;-)

• Jul 26, 2012

• #7

The bird is a European Goldfinch.

You are more likely to see American Goldfinches in Nebraska. Very different.

 

Bird_Bill

Well-known member

• Jul 26, 2012

• #8

This might help 'Dood. Your neighbors put this together in the hope that they can be of help.
A great organization just for Nebraska.

http://www.nebraskabirds.org/www/basics/attracting.htm

Edit: Hey 'Dood, with mountain lions being seen down around Topeka,
no telling what you might run into currently.

 

Last edited: Jul 26, 2012