Woodpecker

[David995031]

This little freeloader was busy demolishing our fat balls this morning. Taken from inside my conservatory window so there is some reflection.

[Clicker]

 ... Unfortunately I think the complicated dark  background has meant the outline of the woodpecker has been lost on this one David ..  I’d be inclined to hang the feeder where there is a much lighter backdrop,  if possible .. they are notoriously shy  birds  to capture in any circumstance ... so patience is a real virtue in the case if the woodpecker  .... I have jackdaws that do this too.... in fact they push the feeder to the edge of the branch so that it drops onto the ground  where they can devour the suet balls without having to perform the acrobatics  necessary when it’s hanging up !!!

[David995031]

Yes Polly I agree with you. I hang some of the feeders from the conservatory gutter to give us a terrific view and keep them out of reach of the pesky squirrels. I would try the same with the fat balls but now that the woodpecker is visiting I am reluctant to do anything to disturb things.

 

[Clicker]

I have just moved 8 hanging feeders  for nuts, seeds. fat-balls  etc (to another tree completely)  that have been in place for 6 years and within an hour  there were just as many birds on them ...  I had to move them as they were ruining a whole bed of rhododendrons below  with debris ... what gets eaten has to  be expelled too unfortunately.

[Clicker]

A friend of mine  buys those large shiny  terracotta coloured, plastic saucers ( to sit plant pots on ) and  then  drills couple of holes in them   turns them upside down and feeds the  detachable metal handles through the holes and makes the saucer an enormous rooftop to the  cylindrical feeders. he squirrels find impossible   to stay on the  shiny material to negotiate past it below to the  food !. I had feeders hanging off a metal pole  for a while  and used  engine oil and WD 40  to stop them climbing up it ... They used to get up two or three feet ..... then slowly slide down again ... ! 

[JamesT]

1 hour ago, Clicker said:

I had feeders hanging off a metal pole  for a while  and used  engine oil and WD 40  to stop them climbing up it ... They used to get up two or three feet ..... then slowly slide down again ... ! 

While I was in New Mexico, squirrels were a major raider (along with racoons), and I used to mix a spoonful of hot chili powder in the seed. This does not affect the birds[*] but the mammals learn quite quickly.

[*] While it seems likely that capsaicin  first evolved as an anti-fungal, one of the selection factors driving its production in the wild is that it is better to have your pods eaten and seeds distributed by birds than by mammals and high capsaicin levels favour that.

[Clicker]

Oooh that’s really interesting James...  so it doesn’t harm the birds ???

[JamesT]

19 minutes ago, Clicker said:

Oooh that’s really interesting James...  so it doesn’t harm the birds ???

No, their physiology doesn't react to it.

Might not be quite as easy here as the supermarkets don't have 1lb bags of ground hot chili.

[David995031]

17 hours ago, JamesT said:

While I was in New Mexico, squirrels were a major raider (along with racoons), and I used to mix a spoonful of hot chili powder in the seed. This does not affect the birds[*] but the mammals learn quite quickly.

[*] While it seems likely that capsaicin  first evolved as an anti-fungal, one of the selection factors driving its production in the wild is that it is better to have your pods eaten and seeds distributed by birds than by mammals and high capsaicin levels favour that.

That sounds like one good tip - thanks James

[Clicker]

i saw this  tip  in a newspaper too . funnily enough  ...reading it late last night ..... . I've tried it today after catching a squirrel  stealing the nuts just after breakfast ... so far he has only been back the once to try .... impressive tip.James .

[David995031]

2 hours ago, Clicker said:

i saw this  tip  in a newspaper too . funnily enough  ...reading it late last night ..... . I've tried it today after catching a squirrel  stealing the nuts just after breakfast ... so far he has only been back the once to try .... impressive tip.James .

And the birds seem OK with it?

[Clicker]

Yup .... strangely enough  as James says ......