Encouraging wildlife

[pigletwillie]

From Johnboys point of view, I can see that birds stuffed full of free food are`nt going to eat all the pests and other crawlies that try to decimate his crops which were his living, in addition he lives in the sticks.

The vast majority of us either have allotments or traditional gardens which we share with wildlife and to a certain extent encourage as this isnt such an issue for us as it in not our living involved.

With regards to the feeding issue, its good practice to feed all year round in urban settings as there is very often much less available natural food available. In a rural setting, especially woodland there shouldnt be a need to feed in the summer as there will be plenty of natural food on offer.

The birds are not stupid and will only raise a brood when natural food is coming on stream and will generally only use the feeder food as a top up. Our feeders get refilled much less in the summer than in the winter because of this. The birds main trigger to breed is increased daylight levels and warmer weather rather than a bag of peanuts or other offerings.

[Tigger]

OK - I'll stop filling the feeders at the end of the month.

[richard p]

we dont normally feed the birds , but tend to leave the garden as natural as possible to encourage insects and dont cut the hedges or tidy up mature flowers till early spring to give the wildlife a chance to harvest all the berries and seeds over winter.

[Anonymous]

Aye Johnboy we'll agree to disagree.

We are not in an urban area, we are in the much underrated Staffordshire moorlands, in the shadow of the Weaver Hills (unlike the Malverns, I bet nobody on site has ever heard of them).

We get a fantastic variety of birds. At the moment goldfinches and siskins are hogging the sunflower hearts table, which, alongside the regulars, ie chaffinches, greenfinches, blackbirds, thrushes, sparrows, dunnocks, etc, etc are more than welcome. During the year we also get tree creepers and nuthatches.

I'm not in the market of making life easy for the birds, but hope to make it a little less stressful, if that makes sense.

valmarg

[Johnboy]

Hi Val,
Thank goodness that we have parted as friends.
You are quite right I have never heard of them there hills!! Really glad that you have a super rural surround. I simply could not live in an urban area I would suffocate.
I am always popping onto the estate behind me on a Friday night before a shoot and scaring the birds my way and on a 5 acre paddock I now have, as far as I know, 16 Pheasant nests and the only problem there is that none of the chicks will be able to get out until they can fly as it is inside my Rabbit fence. It therefore looks like I shall be feeding a few birds myself a little later on.
I have 10 pairs of Swallows now and they are already nesting. They do not hang about. I expect more pairs to arrive although 10 was the amount we had last year but they reared so many young last year I suppose it would be usual to have a few of them as well.
I have wondered what the Wood Pigeons were doing on top of the Hawthorn Hedges of late and I realize that they are partial to leaf buds as they start to expand prior to breaking out. I have never really observed this behaviour before. I suppose this is why I find birds so facinating as there is always something new that you learn about them.

Sincerely, Johnboy.

[Anonymous]

Thanks Johnboy,

I really think it would be 'unthinkable' to fall out with you.

I agree living in the sticks is better than in a town. We do get a lot of wildlife here.

I suppose the evidence you see with your own eyes, as in the case of your friend actually witnessing a poor little chick having a peanut rammed down it's throat. What I have seen is the adult blue/great tits bringing their fledglings into the garden, getting a whole peanut, and chipping off bits to feed to the chick.

It won't be long now before they won't need much feeding. The blackbird juveniles are so tame, I've nearly stepped on some of them. The time they learn fear is when they get in the fruit cage, and on to the redcurrants.

We used to have a gooseberry bush in the garden, and if ever I saw any sign of gooseberry sawfly, I would chuck a few peanuts under the bush, job done in a very short space of time.

Forgot to say we have a ruddy great funfair the other side of the (Churnet) valley. The mallards there are professional beggars. They only have to hear the rustle of a paper bag, and next thing you know they are looking up at you 'with tears in their eyes'.

If I thought I was doing the birds any harm I wouldn't feed them all, but it is so lovely to watch them as I'm slaving over the kitchen sink!!!!

I think I do more birdwatching than slaving!!

They are wonderful creatures, birds, and it would be a very sad world without them. If we can't agree on feeding, we can at least agree on watching them.

valmarg

[oldherbaceous]

I think the last few replies have been quiet touching. As my old nanna used to say, it doesn't matter what you say,it's the way that you say it.
People can have completely different opinions, but if it is said nicely you can still remain good friends. But if said the wrong way it always seems to end in conflict.
This is just my opinion for what it is worth.

Kind regards a soft Old Herbaceous.

Theres no fool like an old fool.

[vivie veg]

Over the last weekend I have put out a tin of dog food under the new duck shed to encourage a fox to come and test the electric fencing. So far so good, the food have remained intact and two dog (my pets) have proved that the fence works.

However, I have noticed that I have had buzzards and Redkites flying very low, obviously looking for the source of the free food! I just hope they give up before I put the ducks there!

I too have seen swallows, but then I'm not that far from Colin, Llanon.

[pigletwillie]

The buzzards may well take ducks but the Red Kites are primarily scavengers and shouldnt be a problem.

[Mr Potato Head]

Lots of talk of tits (thought I might have to ban this thread at first ) but not much about our other garden visitors...

We have had great success attracting a wide variety of birds since we moved in last year. One of the main things is that not all birds like eating out of a hanging feeder.

Dunnocks, sparrows and robins all seem to prefer the spilt seed on the ground. (This is not based on any scientific study just our observations)

Our finches (chaffinches and a rare appearance of a pair of goldfinches) seem to prefer the table-top on the bird table...

Unfortunately, the peacocks and wood pigeons seem to prefer just about anything they can lay their beaks on, including daffodils, lavender, rosemary, pyrocanthus, berberis and I seriously doubt that I'll bother trying any pansies this year! Worse than locusts those peacocks... (but I love 'em)

[pigletwillie]

They taste just like chicken

[Mr Potato Head]

We'd never eat them, honest...

[Johnboy]

Hi Piglet,
I have a large population of Buzzards and an almost now resident pair of Red Kites and I would agree with your comments. Although I lost several Ducks to Monsieur Reynard I have never seen a Buzzard taking an interest in Ducks or Poultry. That doesn't mean that if they were hungry they wouldn't.
As for Peacocks they would go straight in the oven!
I have an estate behind my plot and they used to have them and they got out of hand and came our way.
They are menace and I'm afraid after trying unsuccessfully to capture them, as they were doing too much damage to my Nursery Stock, they were shot.

[vivie veg]

Thank you Johnboy, I was getting worried about the buzzard v duck situation, my ducks are fully grown and probably slightly larger than a buzzard.

I love to rest leaning on my fork handle and watch the birds circling overhead and I don't know if the buzzards, foxes or myxomatosis are the cause but we have no rabbits around the field, which can't be a bad thing!

I do have an active flock of Goldfinches which love the all too frequent thistleheads. I will have to get them cut down before they flower this year.