I live in a first-floor modern tenement flat on the outskirts of Glasgow. A few weeks ago when I spend an enjoyable autumn afternoon fungi-hunting at Lochwinnoch, I bought a couple of basic feeders from the shop, one for suet balls and one for peanuts, to hang in in the tree outside my window. I hoped that the way I hung them made them squirrel and fox proof.However, there are a lot of corvids about. Crows, rooks, magpies and especially jackdaws (I've never seen a jay yet and <cough> I'd be choughed indeed. It didn't take long before something – I suspect one of the jackdaws as I saw one of them feeding on the peanuts on day two – has worked out how to undo the base of the peanut feeder so all the peanuts fall on the ground.
Unless I find a durable solution this could turn out to be an expensive hobby if I am to keep the smaller birds satisfied this could be an expensive hobby!. Is there a corvid-proof way to secure the bottom of the feeder? Please advise!
Yes, bird feeders can turn out to require regular supply top ups, particularly this time of year, when food is less abundant. But the repayment is watching the birds feed and how they feed, not just how they land on the feeders but the process of each taking a turn.
Suet balls, fat balls and peanuts go quickly here, so that doesn't surprise me one bit.
Fox proof, every good chance.
Squirrel proof, I very much doubt, they will climb trees with ease, after all, that is a main stay of their survival as well as running along the ground.
You can get squirrel guards, which should make it difficult for squirrels to access the feeders, though you may find it may deter some of the smaller birds.
Squirrel guards will make it more awkward for the larger birds to feed, blackbirds and similar size, crows, not normally and likewise magpies or other large birds. But never say never, here I have a crow that has almost mastered the art of getting on a fat ball feeder.