Blackcaps

Hi and welcome to the forums :o)

Have you got more than one food source in your garden?  I'd suggest spreading the food out as much as possible, he can't defend everything, but if the bit he's been defending is still there he may leave the other birds to eat on the newly spread out food.

I've had 3 Blackcaps on my feeders this morning, 2 male and 1 female. One of the males is now guarding the feeders very aggresively against smaller birds but isn't taking on anything bigger. Isn't this unusual this time of the year?

Hello Puzzled and Dickens & Rose. Paul has given you good advice  especially in this extreme weather. Extra feeding stations should help.

alison a said:

We were very pleased to have a lone male blackcap visit us before Christmas. He seemed to be joining our usual mixed group of garden birds but since this latest cold snap has become very territorial and agressive to the other birds not even alowing them to come into the garden. We have tried moving the feeders but this has made no difference. Can any one advise us what we can do to stop this behaviour before we have no birds visiting us.

Hi Puzzled

Just posted a possible solution on another thread which you might like to look at. Here's the link.

http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/forums/p/8328/61585.aspx#61585

I won't go over it all again as it's a bit convoluted and it links to yet another thread. I'll be interested to know what you think. It works for me but no guarantees. No charge for the "recipe".

Good luck

TJ

I have got a lone male Blackcap as well without all of the problems you are having. I feed apples on strings and dates on thin bamboo skewers, these I hang in the bushes near to the feeding station. He will be so interested in those that he won't have time to chase the others away. Hope this helps.

Unknown said:

I feed apples on strings and dates on thin bamboo skewers, these I hang in the bushes near to the feeding station.

What a splendid idea!  I had no idea birds would eat dates. They aren't cheap - where do you get them from?

 I have never thought of offering dates to the birds. i will try that tomorrow as I have some already in the cupboard. 

Hi there,

They are widely available in supermarkets in trays like the "Eat Me" brand at Christmas time and still now. But you can get them from fruit stalls in markets (I got mine in Salisbury Market) for about £1.00, you can also get them for cake making as blocks without the stones in supermarkets, they are not too expensive as they last well, the birds have to work at them to get the flesh.