For the first time we have Blackcaps on our feeders (one female occasional visitor and one male who is with us nearly all the time over the past 2 weeks). What has been interesting is that the male Blackcap has totally dominated the tree (birch) in which we have 4 feeding stations and water. He has seen off all variety of tits, robins, nuthatch, chafffinch, greenfinch, and even goldfinch who are eating niger seed, and has even been successful at times in seeing off blackbirds who use our hanging table in the tree. Is this behaviour usual or is it just a sign of the harsh conditions recently?
Hi K, Sorry I don't know as I've never been priveleged to have them in my garden even though there are reports of them in the Borough I live in.
hi K and welcome to the forum
Blackcaps can be very dominant birds at Garden feeders. I have heard of people having problems with them at the feeders
That is in their nature so as Robins they like to chase other birds away.
I do not know if there is a way to deal with the issue at all. I am sure that the birds will manage to defend themselves without any human intervention when it comes to the issue of food.
Regards
Kathy and Dave
Unknown said: For the first time we have Blackcaps on our feeders (one female occasional visitor and one male who is with us nearly all the time over the past 2 weeks). What has been interesting is that the male Blackcap has totally dominated the tree (birch) in which we have 4 feeding stations and water. He has seen off all variety of tits, robins, nuthatch, chafffinch, greenfinch, and even goldfinch who are eating niger seed, and has even been successful at times in seeing off blackbirds who use our hanging table in the tree. Is this behaviour usual or is it just a sign of the harsh conditions recently?
Hello K, I can't help with an answer, I'm afraid, but I just wanted to say Welcome to the Forum.
The necessity of bird-watching is a really good reason for avoiding all forms of housework.
The dust will still be there tomorrow - the birds may not be!
Hi K,
I also can't help with your question but wanted to welcome you to the forums, and to say I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
I had one male blackcap in my garden a few weeks ago for about 10 minutes. He was rooting about in the shrub tubs, and didn't attempt to visit any feeders. Then he was gone and hasn't come back.
Cheers, Linda.
See my photos on Flickr
Try, try and try again..... Managed to get on yesterday after several attempts. Spotted this post and wanted to share my Blackcap excitement also but the website went belly up when I hit "post" and I couldn't get back on. It's taken me till now and several attempts so fingers crossed....
We've had a pair of Blackcaps in our garden (in Aberdeen) for the first time ever as well. We were quite surprised to see them. They didn't hang around long and stayed up the slope for much of the time they were there, in and out of the berberis. They didn't come down to the feeders at all and I haven't seen them since. The only photo I managed to get was rubbish but it was clear enough to ID them.
We do have a few new visitors. One, a beautiful Mistle Thrush who is steadily making his / her way through the berries on the cotoneaster overhanging the fence near to the kitchen window. Have never seen Thrushes in the garden. Chaffinches have also appeared and a wee Wren is bobbing around as well. Both new comers to our garden. They join the Blue, Coal and Great Tits, Blackbirds, Robins, Starlings, Sparrows, Wood Pigeon and Dunnock.
Edit; ooh that worked. Maybe I can add the photo.... (bit big but..)
Make the most of today because, unlike Sky+, there isn't a rewind button.
Hi K, welcome to the forum, hope you enjoy it here. Someone will be along soon and no doubt will answer your question.
Kerry
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kezmo6310/
Hi Paula
Well done you for your perseverance! It's lovely when you get a new bird in your garden isn't it?
Good to hear from you, haven't seen you around for ages. Great news about your blackcaps. I can understand your excitement - you should've seen me the other week when I realised I had photographed my first two redwings!
Hi Paula,
Well done for the photo. I only wish I had one of my one and only fleeting visit!
Hi K
As I mentioned in my last post on this thread the Blackcaps are an aggressive bird, and prefer to fight of the competition of other birds with food. That includes bird feeders.
That is how they are.
Sweet to look at and a bit cantankerious by nature