I have noticed that since the starlings have arrived in great numbers all of the other smaller birds, like the coal tit, blue tit, dunnock etc, have decreased in number. Has anyone else noticed this or is it just in my garden?
I've got to admit that when the crows arrive almost everything disappears except the starlings.
May you find joy in the wonder of all the seasons.
I have only four starlings at the moment. I have two bird stations and I keep the fat balls on one off them and the starlings leave the other alone.
Kind regards Richard.
The starlings come to my garden in groups of between 8/12 but they don't appear to put the others off. It does feel a bit like 'the boys are back in town' when they arrive but the biggest bully in my garden is the robin, not one for sharing :)
Hi Greywolf.
I have up to a hundred starlings and, and by trial and error, I've got them feeding in their own place, and they seem quite happy with the arrangement.
Viv.
I have a special area for my starlings, although they do use the other areas as well.
I find them quite useful because they bring the other birds with them, notably the sparrows. I think the smaller birds come to see what all the fuss is about, from the safety of a tree, then come down when its a bit quieter. They don't seem put off at all, will share the flat feeders, and I have photos of starlings, sparrows and a blackbird sharing the bath. The dunnocks hover about underneath the starling feeders to catch all the discarded food.
I agree with Kay, my bigget bully is the robin who won't share with anything.
Cheers, Linda.
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I have a male blackbird fighting a Starling over dried meal worm this morning.
We have a starling invasion. There is usually 30-40 visiting in a day. On last year's bird count we had 60. One day around September I think they were having some sort of convention in the tree at the bottom of my garden. There must have been - honestly - around a thousand of them. You couldn't put a pin between them. Imagine how my daughter's poor little dog must have felt - he is sacred of birds!