• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Peanuts? (1 Viewer)

Robert Wallace

Well-known member
I have been buying peanuts to feed garden birds since I joined the RSPB in 1974. The first feeders were the nylon netting bags which were readily available. 25 years ago moved to a house with a bigger garden including trees and bushes and so I started using the available peanut feeders and later seedfeeders.
My experience over the years has been that hanging peanut feeders were the least popular compared to other seed mixtures.Often uneaten peanuts needed to be thrown away because they were becoming rotten.
Last year I bought by mistake a large bag of black sunflower seeds (senior moment). I discovered that these sunflower seeds could be put into a typical wire mesh peanut feeder with very little spillage. The take up and consumption of the black sunflower seeds is much much greater than that of peanuts. The species observed feeding include 4 species of tit, chaffinch, greenfinch, golfinch, house sparrow. The only species I might miss is perhaps the great spotted woodpecker, which in any case is only an occaisional visitor to my garden.
My use of peanuts is now confined to spreading on the ground to attract jays, together (for better or worse) with carrion crows, magpies, jackdaws, collared doves, feral pigeons and of course grey squirrels. Most of my hanging feeders are caged against use by grey squirrels.
May I finish with a plug for the BTO Garden Birdwatch Scheme for UK members details on the BTO website -

Thank you
Robert
 
Last edited:
... My experience over the years has been that hanging peanut feeders were the least popular compared to other seed mixtures.Often uneaten peanuts needed to be thrown away because they were becoming rotten. ...

That's interesting. Here, the peanut feeders are very popular with blue tit, great tit, coal tit, great spotted woodpecker, jay, chaffinch, nuthatch, rook, jackdaw as well as the squirrels. The one in the front garden is usually the first feeder to be emptied, and I don't think I have ever had to throw any away. :t:
 
I gave up on peanut feeders a long time ago for the same reason. However, I now put out home-made peanut cake, a mixture of peanut granules, lard, oats and flour. The GSWs especially like it.

I would like to join the BTO's Garden Watch but it is another fee on top of what I already give to the BTO and RSPB each year. I try and do at least an hour's garden watching each week and enter the sightings via BirdTrack. I find that my sightings often match those reported via the BTO's website such as the recent uplift in Bullfinches.
 
I've only just put up a peanut feeder, first one in years! I made it more out of boredom, it does get used, but is by far the least used food source in the garden! Tits tend to use it when they cannot get access to the suet.
 
.

I would like to join the BTO's Garden Watch but it is another fee on top of what I already give to the BTO and RSPB each year. I try and do at least an hour's garden watching each week and enter the sightings via BirdTrack. I find that my sightings often match those reported via the BTO's website such as the recent uplift in Bullfinches.

There are a number of BTO members who take the same view and I must admit I'm also considering using BirdTrack instead. Why should I pay an extra £17 on top of my BTO membership subscription because Garden Birdwatch(GBW) is regarded as "entry level"?
Please don't get the wrong idea GBW is important and is appropriate for all garden birdwatchers, I was speaking as a BTO member since about 1975.
 
Last edited:
I should add that when I first tried black sunflower seeds in my peanut feeder they were mixed in equal amounts but it was only the sunflower seeds that were eaten.
Two days ago I emptied the peanut feeder in the back garden which was atill 2/3rds full after about a month, and refilled it with blacksunflower seeds. The feeder is now almost empty, I acknowledge that the outside temperature are not far off freezing.
The peanuts from the feeder were placed on the lawn and consumed by the usual suspects. I place peanuts on the ground to attract jays and have been successful.
 
I find the black sunflower to be food of first choice amongst all the smaller birds.

Other stuff only gets eaten when it runs out or feeder occupied.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 11 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top