It Is Not So Easy To Squirrel Proof Bird Feeders
One of the problems with wanting to put out a bunch of bird feeders is that they tend to attract other animals as well. These other creatures include chipmunks, squirrels and an assortment of small rodents. Since this is not what you want in your garden you need to find a way to make them not available to this other seed seeking small animals. What you will need for your garden is squirrel proof bird feeders. These feeders will have some type of device that makes it impossible, or nearly so, for the animals to get to the bird seed.
Some bird feeders try to solve this problem by using plastic shields on the sides to keep the seeds in. There are some problems with this method of making squirrel proof bird feeders. The side pieces will keep the squirrel from eating huge piles of seeds. But what they learn to do is to fly at the feeder, knocking a bunch of seeds to the ground as they go. Then, when they fall, moments later, they have a meal waiting for
them. Some of the smarter ones get very good at this and learn to take a flying leap that spills large quantities of seeds. If this becomes too much of a problem, there are other alternatives. One is buying a more expensive feeder that has been made squirrel proof by the manufactures.
The other alternative is to do things that will mean the squirrels and other small animals are unable to gain access to the bird feeder. One method is to use a system that will put wire screening around the bird feeder and so prevent small animals and, unfortunately, large birds from getting the food. One other suggested method for making squirrel proof bird feeders is to hang empty plastic pop bottles on a line above the feeder. This can prevent the small animal from being able to get to the feeder and usually results in them falling off the line, where they land just fine, only to try again. Eventually when they are unable to get to the feeder they will give up.
Bird feeder comparison
Common backyard birds and the types of bird feeders they prefer according to a great researcher at Electronic data information source of Florida university
Bird |
Tube Feeder |
Platform Feeder |
Hopper feeder |
Thistle Tube Feeder |
Hanging Suet Feeder |
Peanut Butter Suet Feeder |
Nectar Feeder |
Fruit Feeder |
American Goldfinch | X |
X |
X |
|||||
Eastern Bluebird | X |
|||||||
House Finch | X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
Hummingbird | X |
|||||||
Jays | X |
X |
X |
|||||
Northern Cardinal | X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
Nuthatches | X |
X |
X |
|||||
Orioles | X |
X |
||||||
Song Sparrow | X |
|||||||
Titmice | X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
Warblers | X |
|||||||
Woodpeckers | X |
X |
||||||
Wrens | X |
squirrels bird feeders | Squirrel Proof Bird Feeders
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