Hello,
I'm lucky enough to live on the edge of my town with lots of greenery around: trees and hedgerows and fields and so on, as well as gardens. There's a pair of magpies nearby who I really like, and a pair of robins, and loads of brilliant starlings and sparrows and so on. Gulls too and the occasional more exotic visitor, but they're not part of this story.
Over the past six months or so I've been putting out a little bowl of seeds on the balcony every morning. I started off with sunflower seeds and pine nuts because it was a bit of a whim and I didn't have anything else to hand, but I soon got some "All Year Round Wild Bird Seed Mix" which seems popular. I love seeing the magpies and robins and starlings hopping around while I'm working from home, it's like I've got my own Serengeti watering hole right outside my window! Endlessly fascinating — but I'm sure you all know that better than I do.
Now, I've got nothing against pigeons, they need love too, and good luck to them, and all that. But recently one bold pigeon has taken up residence on the balcony and monopolised the food. It eats all the seeds and just generally struts around getting fat and intimidating the other birds. The little birds just get scraps, and I rarely see the magpies any more.
So, is there a simple way I can discourage the pigeon — and any other pigeons — from eating the birdseed I put out, without also discouraging the magpies? I guess it's partly to do with the seed mix, and the one I've been using has wheat and barley in it, which I now discover pigeons like, so I guess using a different seed mix would be a good start.
What else can I do? Any advice gratefully received!