AIBU?
To be annoyed with the birds, especially the finches?
Boco · 19/06/2007 09:42
I took the dcs to a Springwatch Festival at the weekend. It poured with rain, the grass turned into a bog - i was wearing ballet pumps and seriously risked getting trench foot.
We learnt how to make a bird feeder from a plastic bottle and some twigs. They gave us twigs and seeds and said that finches would love it.
On Sunday we spent several hours making it when we got home. A 2 year old putting a bag of sunflower seeds in a small plastic bottle can take many hours. If you use a funnel, you find that the seeds are too big, and you then have to find a skewer to poke out the impacted seeds. Finding a skewer can take ages. You may also find that a skewer and a two year old can inflict damage on the toes of a five year old.
I had to do the dangerous bit of gouging the holes. I used scissors, but that didn't work, so used a corkscrew, and managed to make a big stigmata hole in the middle of my left hand.
Eventually, left hand bandaged, we finished and hung it up on a branch of a tree in good view of the window.
Not ONE bastard bird has been near it.
Not even a finch. There's a finchs nest in that tree. Finchs are supposed to love sunflower seeds. They haven't so much as perched on the bloodstained twigs sticking out of the bottom of the bottle. Dcs have been keeping an eye out, we've all been watching very closely.
I think that's rude of the birds.
themildmanneredjanitor · 19/06/2007 09:45
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themildmanneredjanitor · 19/06/2007 09:50
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themildmanneredjanitor · 19/06/2007 09:57
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themildmanneredjanitor · 19/06/2007 10:09
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Boco · 19/06/2007 10:24
Ok MMJ, i'll give them one more chance to get used to the idea that they must use it gleefully for the sake of the children and to compensate for my injuries.
After that i'm taking custys advice and getting in touch with that woman with the crow problem.
FioFio · 19/06/2007 10:25
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foxinsocks · 19/06/2007 14:46
Birds are more clever than you think. They are outsmarting you here Boco.
First of all, mmj is right, the food needs to be there for a bit before they 'trust' it. Don't ask me why but I reckon at some point in the bird's evolutionary development, some mean fucker put out a bird feeder filled with pebbles instead of food. Now, they all fly around new feeders until they are convinced it's full of seeds.
Secondly, once they trust your feeder, they will probably only start to peck the seeds at some seriously anti social hour - like 4am. Meaning you don't get to see them. You'll realise this when there are no seeds left and yet you've still not seen a bird.
Failing that, a squirrel will find it, eat all the seeds and there'll still be no birds.
It's a thankless task bird feeding really.
Boco · 19/06/2007 14:50
Thank you Fox.
I'm also wondering if i have a serious design fault, and the birds know it. You had to make holes in the bottle that are big enough for a bird to pull out the seed, but not so big that the seeds fall out. I wonder if my holes are too small, and the birds aren't willing to embarrass themselves by pecking at small holes. I'm not willing to spear myself in the hand with a corkscrew again, so me and the birds are at a standstill with the feeder thing.
bookwormmum · 19/06/2007 14:57
Birds are ungrateful feckers and if they do eventually eat your seed, they'll probably thank you by crapping on your clean washing .
I can lend you my cat if you want - I caught her running around the garden last night with a live mouse in her mouth (I took her indoors to give him a chance to live). I'm sure she could adapt to catching finches instead as she can certainly climb trees . That'll teach them to be fussy eaters .
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