I am out of ideas and hoping someone here can help. I have a ground feeder tray + cage which is visited by blackbirds, song thrushes, house sparrows, dunnocks, and robins. Crows, magpies, and pigeons are successfully kept out. But there are two grey squirrels that are taking most of the food I put out, ometv the birds are barely getting any lately.
I've tried the adjustable RSPB cage, but if I reduce the hole size the blackbirds look at it perplexed and no longer enter, whilst the squirrels run straight instill. I have a theory urban grey squirrels have evolved to be skinnier to access feeders! So control by bird/animal size is not working.
I've also tried mixing hot chili pepper in with the food, but that didn't put them off at all.
How high off the ground will ground feeding birds go for food? It sounds oxymoronic but an "off the ground" caged table in the middle of the lawn that the squirrels can't jump or climb on might be the only way to feed ground birds. Learn more
Does anyone know of any purchasable or DIY solutions, please?
3 pairs of blackbirds in Nottingham would appreciate any suggestions you have!
Hi kaniroof, the only way you will be able to stop squirrels is to have a bird table or feeder station fitted with a baffle dome beneath a free standing pole which would have to be placed far enough away from any likely launch pad for the squirrels who can jump 8 - 10 feet. There are different baffles that fit different feeding poles but to give you an idea here's one method I used with hanging feeders. I think you can get domes to fit beneath bird tables if you have a look online. Good luck, the baffle dome method was the only way I could stop the squirrels from reaching the food as ground cages they accessed. They can squeeze through like mice !
Edit: here's one for a bird table which your blackbird could access
I'll echo Hazels reply, with a plus. As Hazel knows, we've had a problem with squirrels, who are very determined little creatures, accessing the feeders, and one in particular nothing seemd to stop it accessing the feeders, not even the baffle dome.
It was so determined, it leapt a gap of almost three metres, to get at the feeders!
The links below will take you to two short video clips of that spectacular leap.
A grey squirrel leaps from the right onto the feeding station!
Precision leaping!
The playhouse has been removed in the interests of squirrel safety.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/peak-rambler/51669794212/
A grey squirrel leaps from the old playhouse (right) onto the feeding station (left)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/peak-rambler/51670833138/
Generally, the feeders need to be around two metres from hedges, fences, trees and overhanging branches and other items.