Starlings have just emptied feeder twice since 8am!!

[Kate3150]

We’ve got some baby blue tits in our nesting box so I decided to add to our feeder collection and buy one to store some mealworms.
The little birds don’t have a look in, the starlings are just taking it all. I don’t mind feeding them but I can’t keep this up, I’ll be topping it up all day. Shall I move the feeder so it’s a bit more hidden in the trees?

I have the same issue! A pair of starlings that empty the mealworm feeder within 10 mins and don't share! The smaller birds end up picking up the dusty crumbs from the patio instead.

I have homemade fat cakes in coconut shell that attracts starlings. I have other seed mixture feeder that attract other smaller birds. I have robin that feed off my hand that likes one particular bird food. And I put seed mixture in a big plate for bigger birds like pigeon and jackdaws.
So in my garden, they all seem happy and don't really fight for food.

Yup, I keep mealworms for my leopard gecko and put them out when I have more than I need or they've pupated - the starlings descend en masse and polish them off in minutes. I counted one with 17 in its beak at once!

You can buy small bird feeders

So I think my point is that mealworms = starling crack and no other bird is going to get a look in.

@barberousbarbara starlings are small birds though, they are also amazing and beautiful and just as in need of food. Just put something else out for the tits that's not mealworms ;)

I genuinely don’t have an issue with feeding the starlings, especially the babies but I can’t afford to top up the feeders as quick as they empty them 🤣. I have other seed feeders which they don’t touch but I thought I’d try the mealworms and they’ve gone down a bit too well 😳