Goldfinch migration and Long Tails

Hi Goldie,

Welcome to the forums. I hope you enjoy them.

I can't answer your questions I'm afraid, but there are several people on the forums who will.

The RSPB book says about 80% of goldies migrate to Europe in the winter. Many people on these forums have complained their goldies have gone, although one or two folk are still getting them, such as yourself. You are very lucky to have a dozen or so visiting your garden. Will you send some to me? I live in Lancashire!! I had 5 visit my feeders in November. This dropped to one single one until the other day when I got a second one.

I have never had any Long Tails, so again, please will you direct them north?

Will do, Sparrow! I must say that since I placed my feeder outside my kitchen window I have been amazed and delighted at the different feathered visitors I am getting. All kinds of finches, tits Great, Blue, Coal and Long Tails, Yellow Hammers, Black Bird (he's the boss), dunnocks, sparrows, wagtails... The list is endless. I really wasn't interested in wildlife or birds until I moved out to the middle of Cheshire, now I can't get enough - it's brilliant! 

A very happy Goldie!

Hi Goldie and welcome to the forum. I would also like some of your long tailed tits and goldfinches please so don't send them all to that Sparrow person!!!!! (Only joking - Sparrow, Kezmo and I have been bemoaning our lack of them for ages LOL).

Thanks for the welcome, Squirrel. I must say the Long Tails haven't been so frequent as they usually are at this time of year, but a young woodpecker seems to have taken a liking to my nuts, so to speak. He's quite a brave thing, not easily spooked.

I have a slight problem with around 20 ducks from the field opposite, and 3 hens who live next door. They have become wise to the time I throw seed for the ground feeding birds. The cheeky hens even come knocking at my french windows if I'm late. The poor ground feeders haven't a chance. The ducks hardly let the seed touch the ground. I do love them, but any thoughts on how to get the seed to the birds they are meant for would be appreciated.

Hi Goldie

I have found that most ground feeding birds will actually be quite happy feeding from a bird table. It may take them a couple of days to get used to the idea but my tables are 4 feet above ground and all my "regulars" are perfectly happy to eat from them - including the blackbirds, thrushes, robins, 4 wood pigeons, etc.

Thanks Squirrel, I'll try that.

G

Happily, I don't have a duck and chicken problem, but I do have the perennial problem of my dogs eating everything in sight. (They would eat packets of brillo pads if I put them down). So I am very interested in Squirrel's blackbirds etc. eating from tables, and am going to give it a try. My blackbirds don't venture off the ground, but my tables and trays are a bit too high for them probably.

I have a window box that is about 4 feet off the ground under the shed window. Since we have had all the snow I have been putting bits and pieces ontop of the snow in the window box, and have seen the odd blackbird on there, so I may put a whole tray of food on there and see what happens. I would be delighted if my blackbirds would use something like that as I find it very difficult to feed them on the ground because of the dogs stealing it all. The dunnocks are fine because they eat seed from under the feeders, which the dogs find very difficult to hoover up!

Hi Sparrow - my dunnocks use the tables as well. I have several photos of what I call my grumpy dumpy dunnocks sitting hunched up in the snow on the fence looking very cross and waiting impatiently for half a dozen or so starlings to "vacate the premises"! You can almost hear the tuts and tsks and mutterings.

Here you go...