Starlings!
Comments (10)
10 years ago- 10 years ago
Related Discussions
starling babies in trouble?
Comments (10)Thank you. :-)I was hoping you would see the post soon. We did manage to get them all back in the nest. I did not observe any mites while I had the chicks waiting for DH to take apart the house. I was checking for ant bites too. One lil fella probably wll die soon as his side seemed bloated...maybe from injuring something as he fell. The birdhouse is for bluebirds and does have a slope that the chicks may have wiggled up on and then out the hole. Mom and Dad starling were there within 5 minutes feeding them again. At least one of them was. The other parent seems to have a heck of a time getting in that hole(it was designed to keep them out)and just sort of stands around looking helpless. I just hate seeing fallen chicks and since I read on a bird rescue site that the parents will usually accept the baby even if you have touched them, I now return them to their nests. So far I have had good luck observing parents returning to nests that I have returned their babies to. If it looks like I may need to handfeed any at some point I will let you know so you can help me. Don't know if I would be able to as I do work full time though. I didn't realize dogfood would be eaten by the baby starlings. I had to give my pet bird handfeeding "formula" from a syringe. Do the starling babies just eat solid foods like that right away? ~Heidi...See MoreStarlings and Sparrows.....hogging my feeders!
Comments (2)The only way I've found to keep them away is not to use any type of feeder they can access. No tray feeders and no hopper feeders big enough for them to perch on. I have a tube feeder and a mesh tube feeder for nyjer seed, a window feeder (too small for grackles and the like), and a Squirrel Buster Standard. The grackles come by once in awhile but there is nowhere for them to really get much of anything. Mostly they squawk their frustration and then I chase them off and I don't see them again for a few days. I saw one try to land on the squirrel buster - he sort of teetered there for a minute and then fell/flew off....See MoreSuddenly lots of starlings showed up
Comments (3)The starlings randomly show up at my house too! I believe they send out scouts and when one locates food then the whole gang joins in. I wouldn't mind them so bad but they scare off my little beloved birds. I try to spook them when they really start going nuts. It has gotten so bad that I have taken down some feeders in the past. I also bought caged feeders so my finches can still eat. Unfortunately the cardinals can't fit in the caged feeders so they suffer too when the Starlings arrive in big numbers. I understand they have to eat too, but they are not meant to be here in the states....See MoreOT - Starlings vs Purple Martins
Comments (8)I do see the "black fog" of birds flying over us in the early spring and late fall as they migrate. I guess those may be Starlings...I always thought they were cowbirds. They will land in droves in our yard sometimes, but the dogs normally chase them off quickly. Maybe since the Martin house is so high above ground, they decided to try to make a home here. I wouldn't have known they were Starlings instead of Martins if I hadn't been checking images in my Martin pamphlet against what the birds building nests in the house look like...the birds building nests have yellow beaks, which the pamphlet says is a tell sign of male Starlings during mating season. I've already let DH know the house is coming down ASAP. He's thrilled that I've attracted the plague to our yard and now he gets to remedy my mistake....See More
10 years agoI'm having issues with Starlings too. I've been feeding the birds for years and would seem them occasionally but nothing like lately - they are everywhere! I don't know what to do. I scare them off sometimes and the smaller birds stay put. I do have a couple of tube feeders with cages that prevent them from using them but what about the Cardinals and other decent size birds (?)
They go nuts over my suet too, basically everything I have out. Let me know if you come of up with any solutions.
- 10 years ago
- 10 years ago
- 10 years ago
- 10 years ago
Hi Sylvia Da Costa -
thanks for the update. I'm happy to hear you're toughing it out.Yesterday
I felt so bad taking my feeders down at lunch so after work I stopped by my
local feed mill and picked up some black striped sunflower seed (shell on) -
the shells on the striped are supposedly harder to crack so I bought them
hoping the starlings couldn't crack them, but the cardinals could. I also
bought an upside down suet feeder which is supposed to help with starlings
(even though I read some can and will hang upside down). When I came home for
lunch today there wasn't a startling in sight - I was relieved but there were
also less birds all together :(
I
couldn't take not feeding them (like normal) lol so I put out a
couple more feeders today, with mix of reg seed and some premium
sunflower hearts and peanuts (shell removed) - sure enough two starlings
showed up - but I can handle that. I just can't handle 30 starlings and 80
in the tree nearby.
I'm
hoping with time, and as I continue to feed mostly only shelled seed, the
starlings keep away. Once I feel more confident they are gone then I'll sneak
out the good stuff for the birds I enjoy seeing.
I
may buy a caged peanut feeder soon because I hate to stop
feeding peanuts too. Here's the one I found that I like so far. I don't
know if the starlings beaks can reach in far enough (?) I'm hoping not. Duncraft sells this one for $39.95. I prefer to buy one local if I can find something similar.
And for my little downy woodpeckers, I may buy this suet feeder from DrsFosterandSmith. Woodpeckers are one my favs to watch too! The norther flicker is always a delight to see.
- 10 years ago
dbobul