How to Attract Better Birds in NYC? (1 Viewer)

I am a beginner birder. I live in NYC and my apartment is across the street from a park. I see birds everywhere and I have attracted some birds to my fire escape with bird feeders but... I am confused and have questions. Hopefully you'll all be able to help me.

About 6 months ago I started buying bird feeders to hang on my fire escape. I probably spent more than $1000 going through feeder after feeder, trying to find the right ones that would attract desirable birds but, at the same time, keep those pesky pigeons away.

After some trial and error I managed to get a combination of feeders that I liked and that attracted birds other than pigeons. The first birds to my feeders were the house sparrows. I know... a bore and a nuisance to some of you but in NYC beggars can't be choosers. Then I started getting blue jays and downy woodpeckers! Hooray! Then, the horror of horrors, I started getting another bird I had never seen before, the dreaded european starling. The starlings came in droves and would eat all of my bird feed in minutes and poop all over my fire escape. Yesterday, in the bitterly cold winter, I climbed out onto my fire escape to scrub it down with bleach and to clean my windows.

Then I got the idea. Screw the sparrows and the european starlings. I remember watching a YouTube video from experienced ornithologists and one guy said that, "If all you're attracting is sparrows then you deserve sparrows". Oooh, the truth hurts. So I took those words to heart and took down all of my feeders except for one, the feeder with whole peanuts that the blue jays and woodpeckers love.

So my question is for those birders in the northeastern U.S. It is the middle of winter. I want to attract other birds, such as songbirds and finches. If I got a thistle/nyjer feeder, will this attract finches in the middle of winter? Are finches migratory birds that fly south for the winter? I will gladly displace sparrows and starlings if I could attract more native birds to my fire escape. This would up my bird game considerably.

Any help would be welcome.
Thank you,
- David

Hi again David!

Have you tried Safflower seed? Not a lot of birds like it but No. Cardinals, Chickadees and Tufted Titmouse are at my Safflower feeder constantly.

KC Foggin said:

Hi again David!

Have you tried Safflower seed? Not a lot of birds like it but No. Cardinals, Chickadees and Tufted Titmouse are at my Safflower feeder constantly.

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Hello! Thanks for the reply. Ahh, yes, I just tried safflower seeds last week thinking that this could be the solution to the starling problem as I read that starlings don’t like safflower. At first both the sparrows and starlings were put off by the safflower ( I mean it’s definitely not as tasty as peanut butter nuggets.) but both of these birds got used to it. Anyway, a few days later the starlings were decimating the safflower too. But then I started learning about song birds and finches and how desireable they are. Surely the starlings and sparrows could not feed from a nyjer feeder but the finches can. Do finches hang around in winter or do they go somewhere else?

Also, a couple of times I had a pair of cardinals on my fire escape. Cardinals and blue jays together was a sight to behold. If I could figure out a way to get cardinals but keep the starlings away, that would be a huge bonus.

I've never tried the unshelled Safflower seeds.

Of course in the weather you are dealing with, I guess if a bird is hungry enough they'll eat anything.

As to the Finches I always had House Finches all winter long in NYC. Goldfinches, not so much.

KC... wow, with over 245,000 posts you a real expert. I just checked. My safflower is in the shell. My mistake. And the starlings went right at them full on. Hmm, OK... so now how do I get the cardinals but no starlings? I just ordered a nyjer feeder so I will see if I can get any finches. I just have to make sure those pesky sparrows stay away.

Believe me, I am no expert. I'm always learning Dave!

The NYC Audubon would be a good source of information.
They run the Evodia Fields feeders in Central Park, which have become a well accepted hot spot for all manner of sparrows, doves, grackles, woodpeckers, titmice, blue jays, cardinals, nuthatches etc., along with the associated predators such as Cooper's Hawks.
The site is run on the 'Let a hundred flowers bloom' principle, so there are waves of 'junk' birds periodically, but there is enough to allow the more desirable native species to flourish as well.

If that approach is too inclusive for your situation, I'd suggest switching to unshelled safflower seed, as starlings have difficulty cracking seed shells, while that is a breeze for cardinals.

Thank you, etudiant. I will check out the NYC Audubon and the Evodia Fields lead. This will be interesting indeed. The “Let a hundred flowers bloom” principle is great advice. Maybe I shouldn’t be too bothered by the sparrows but I read somewhere that where the house sparrows are, the finches will stay away. A fire escape is a small space for a bird sanctuary and I want to maximize the potential to attract finches. There were way too many sparrows hanging around. I will try again with just whole peanuts and safflower for a few more days. Yesterday and today I could tell the sparrows were nervous without their food. I felt bad for them. They have no clue they’re an invasive species.

I felt bad for them. They have no clue they’re an invasive species.

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Not their fault

I've got a thistle feeder that goldfinches visit all winter long (and from time to time during the warmer season). It is also visited by juncos and titmice and a few others, but not regularly.
There's a starling nest just a few yards from the feeder, but the starlings ignore the thistle feeder entirely, as do house sparrows. No rock pigeons here, but mourning doves sometimes pick up the spills. However, the thistle feeder is much less messy than other feeders. Note: I hang mine on the tip of a flagpole set at 45 degrees, so squirrels can't reach it.

Took a few weeks before the birds first noticed the feeder. Might take longer for birds in NYC to find you, but they will.

When spring comes I'll put out hummingbird feeders (also on flagpoles, to foil the ants). Those take a bit more maintenance (need to be cleaned and sterilized regularly, or they get a black fungus that drives the birds away) but should be pigeon-proof.

nartreb said:

I've got a thistle feeder that goldfinches visit all winter long (and from time to time during the warmer season). It is also visited by juncos and titmice and a few others, but not regularly.
There's a starling nest just a few yards from the feeder, but the starlings ignore the thistle feeder entirely, as do house sparrows. No rock pigeons here, but mourning doves sometimes pick up the spills. However, the thistle feeder is much less messy than other feeders. Note: I hang mine on the tip of a flagpole set at 45 degrees, so squirrels can't reach it.

Took a few weeks before the birds first noticed the feeder. Might take longer for birds in NYC to find you, but they will.

When spring comes I'll put out hummingbird feeders (also on flagpoles, to foil the ants). Those take a bit more maintenance (need to be cleaned and sterilized regularly, or they get a black fungus that drives the birds away) but should be pigeon-proof.

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This is a very useful post. Thank you. Since I started this thread the only food I'm giving the birds is whole peanuts (for the Blue Jays and Downy Woodpeckers), whole safflower seeds (for "hopefully" the cardinals and other native birds) and thistle in a tube feeder (for native finches). I'm using a tube feeder to keep out the rain and the snow.

At first the safflower seeds did not detour the House Sparrows or the Starlings but now, a few days later, I notice a lot less Sparrows and when the Starlings come around they generally check out the seed and just fly away. Good news. Hopefully soon the Starlings will be gone for good.

My one weakness is that I love feeding the birds "Bark Butter Bits". They go crazy for it and it always makes me smile but I know I'm creating a problem. I need to get a little more serious about birding and stop feeding the Sparrows and Starlings.

I just love, love seeing those Downy Woodpeckers though. Oooh.. they are so pretty and calm and mysterious to me.

To kick myself in the butt and to convince myself that those cute little Sparrows are actually evil little bastards I've been watching YouTube videos. I've been watching House Sparrows move into the bird houses of Eastern Bluebirds and decapite their heads. Other videos show House Sparrows chewing off the Bluebirds beaks or eating their eyeballs. It's awful, really it is. I need to stop feeling any empathy whatsoever for House Sparrows. It's just so difficult.

I have my thistle feeder hanging up on my fire escape. It's been 3 days now. Still no finches but it's still early too. Will cross my fingers and hope they eventually come.

Still, in the end, I'm glad to have wild life on my NYC fire escape. It brings nature close.

I'm so excited. Yesterday I got my first goldfinches feeding from the nyjer feeder. There were quite of few of them also. Today they came back and I'm watching them as I type this. So now I've attracted bluejays, downy woodpeckers, and goldfinches, all native-American birds. I have whole peanuts for the bluejays and woodpeckers and nyjer seed for the finches.

I am in a conundrum though. I have safflower seeds out on my fire escape also. The european starlings are staying away from this seed, for the most part. I see them come every once in a while. The house sparrows continue to ravage the safflower seeds, however. Should I discontinue serving the safflower seeds so the house sparrows will leave entirely? This will leave only the whole peanuts and nyjer seed for food.

I want to figure out a way to feed the cardinals. They have landed on my fire escape a few times but they are elusive. Perhaps they are shy and don't like being close to people or buildings. I think that the cardinals would eat the safflower seed but those pesky house sparrows are everywhere. What can I feed the cardinals that the house sparrows and european starlings don't like? Tricky question, I know.

The type of feeder you use is really key, as I had the same experience as you. It’s almost impossible to keep sparrows away but with log feeders I attract red bellied woodpeckers and sapsuckers as well. Domes will keep starlings and doves away. Cardinals will eat large striped sunflowers that others can’t crack.