Jane, if you only have one feeder out, you might try a good mixture with black oil sunflower seeds stirred into it. Don't get the cheapie kind with those little reddish-brown "BB's" in it. I have never seen ANYTHING actually eat those. I get mine at PetSmart, and I really love the Stokes mixture that has no hulls in it. I feed it, black oiler sunflowers and safflower seed. Safflower seed goes into a feeder that doesn't have squirrel protection, because they don't really like it, but cardinals and titmice do. HOWEVER, no matter what you are feeding, there will be times when birds are not around for various reasons. I have hardly any right now, mostly due to a pair of hawks hanging about our neighborhood. And even without the hawks, birds often disappear for a few weeks now and then. One more thing...don't forget that WATER is probably even more important than seed in luring birds to your yard. You'll notice that most of Maureen's pictures feature her great birdbath. Be sure to provide several "baths" around the yard. They can be anything from decorative features to trashcan lids on the ground with 2" of water in them. I often turn clay pots upside down and put a clay saucer on top for water. Keep the water CLEAN and shallow, maybe even adding a rock in the center for birds to stand on. Good luck! Marcia

They are getting bigger and there is sure enough of them in there, it doesn't really stink, but there is a distinct odor. Hubby couldn't smell it, but I could, so they are out in the garage right now. I hated the thoughts of them in the house, but it was too cold out there, it's okay now. Mine seem to be mostly in one corner, Are yours like that? one end of the bin seems almost empty, but they are crowded in the other end, it was a learning experience. I don't know that i want to start feeding the other birds though . I feed them seed, butI'm not continuing to raise worms if no bluebirds, My family already thinks I've lost it. If they don't come in July, I'll advertise them and give them away on Freecycle or something. My birds didn't come till July last year, so maybe they will come here to raise a later brood. I was hoping they'd come back in the spring, but no show. It is disapointing.

It was so much fun to look at your photos! It looks like you had an enjoyable summer with your birds - and the cardinal youngsters are so adorable. Your landscape also looks pretty and very bird-friendly. It's neat to see what others have done with their space. By any chance, did you ever see where the cardinals' nest was? Just curious. We have had cardinals in and out of our yard here this summer, but I have never seen a nest or even seen them retreat to a particular space, they just come to the crabapple tree and make a quick run to the feeder, then back to the tree, and back to wherever their "homebase" is. You will no doubt be enjoying your cardinals throughout the winter, which will be fun. Thanks for sharing -

I'm glad your bird problem turned out to be seasonal but just in case you ever face this problem again (or any bird infestation problem) I thought it might be helpful to just mention a different angle on this. The problem is not that the birds are pooping (or whatever they're doing) in your pool. That is simply a symptom of your real problem: that your environment is attractive to birds. If you really want to keep birds from being destructive to your property you have to make it so that your land is a place they don't want to hang out on in the first place. There are a lot of different approaches to this but yes, stopping the food supply is one of them. Another would be the mylar balloons someone else mentioned up above. There are also specialized bird scare balloons with 'eyes' that follow the birds wherever they fly as well as holographic tape. These incorporate movement so they are usually more affective than static decoys. There are other senses to attack as well: taste/smell, touch, and hearing. Birds hate methyl anthranilate (a chemical derived from concord grapes that has long been used for grape flavoring)--it gives them a similar sensation to what we feel when we encounter bleach. This comes in commercially available sprays. Also, there are sticky gels, netting, or spike strips that keep birds from roosting on certain surfaces. Lastly, there are sound devices that utilize recordings of predators/distress calls that scare birds away. For a partially or fully enclosed area you could use an ultrasonic device as well (one that can't be heard by humans but is annoying to birds and bats). Make sure that you switch up whatever you use from time to time. If you use balloons, move the location (but always keep it near where the birds are nesting). If you're using a sound device change the interval between effects, try to randomize the effects being used. Also, using the products together in a synergistic way will create a more effective and longer-lasting reaction. I'm glad to hear that no one has mentioned killing or injuring the birds...don't do that. As mentioned before that would be reacting to the symptoms rather than truly solving the problem. Furthermore, it would be very easy to accidentally tamper with one of the MANY birds protected by the Migratory Bird Act of 1918 (and then you'd be in big trouble). Just a side note: be careful when cleaning up the bird poop. Birds can transmit over 60 diseases to humans. Some of them are fatal. Bird dropping particles can be unknowingly inhaled and lead to serious health problems. Good luck in your future bird encounters! Here is a link that might be useful: click for examples, case studies and FAQs about bird pest control