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Starling Pests--a Suggestion: NARRATED
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- Опубліковано 2 лют 2019
- You can try to starve Starlings off your property, but that has unintended consequences. Here's a halfway measure that might appeal to you. PLEASE CLICK 'LIKE' IF YOU APPRECIATE THE MOVIE.
Starlings (and House Sparrows) are not native to North America and are out-competing local species for resources, including nesting spaces and food. Many of us put feeders out with the hope of sustaining the populations of native birds that are losing their habitats and resources -- so the very last thing we want to do is feed Starlings and further ensure their exploding population and competition with native species. It's a bit exasperating to hear people say "oh they deserve to eat too; they're cute" -- no, if we're going to talk about deserving, the original local species deserve a chance at survival. The point is, if you're feeding them, you're helping expedite the demise of local species.
@King Joffrey how?
@ 5mm Ben-Sher
Stella is 100% correct. The only solution is exterminating this invasive species to the point where native species can nest safely and return to their local nesting grounds. This is the only way to ensure that our species do not become extinct.
The best defense against starlings is simple traps, and a BB gun for your kid, with a strict only kill starling order
EXACTLY
A square of suet and a 12 gage works for me.
Pathetic.
Terrible
Lol same
How handsome are starlings when the are murdering woodpeckers in a tree hollow?
i tried everything - didn't work. brought out the airgun and after half a dozen go down - the rest stay away. if the starlings would let the other birds feed, i wouldn't care.....but they don't. and even worse, it got to the point where even when the starlings were full, they'd sit there and run off any birds coming in to feed. - that was the breaking point for me. i've had to bring out the gun a couple other times - but they get the message real quick.
Well done.
The air rifle is the only thing that works reliably with Starlings and English Sparrows. If you don't have the skill set, or isolation from other properties there's not much else you can do.
Exactly ! Once you plug a few the word gets around and they avoid the place.
@@VagoniusThicket 👍👍😀
@@VagoniusThicket So this will work?! I got the pellet gun yesterday but was going to return because I’ve never killed anything in my life, other than a tick. But I’m at my wits end. I was hoping one would have to go in hopes to send a message to the others
My Northern Mocking Bird chases Starlings off the feeders and I treat him with live mealworms for his efforts. He actually comes up to the window and flaps his wings to alert me when the supply of worms has gone dry - I appreciate this Mockingbird for his boldness and ownership of his domain and he is not aggressive to other birds only Starlings. What a wonderful character the Northern Mocking Bird. While I watch the live worm bowl the starlings do not show up, the Mockingbird sure does along with Titmouse, House Wrens all having a few live mealworms.
Loved hearing all this. One year we put out mealworms in a tray feeder, and our Mockingbird, unlike yours chased off EVERYBODY. I made a movie about him scattering the Starlings: ua-cam.com/video/nXNE1pGctx8/v-deo.html. I also made one about the Mocker chasing off other birds: ua-cam.com/video/UbUJ1oTPH40/v-deo.html
Lucky!!
Yes but when the mockingbirds leave their nest for food, Starlings are able to invade their nest and kill their young.
So mockingbirds are NOT immune to this vicious predator.
That’s good.
@@manjushamamidi Thanks..
BB gun... I shoot the hell out of starlings
In order to conserve our native species of birds, this is the only solution. Don’t feed these little buggers! You are furthering the extinction of native population if you do so.
I've begun trapping Starlings and you have to really look at a dead one closely to appreciate
how large their beaks are in comparison to other species of birds of a similar size.
It's no wonder they are killing off our native species so easily, especially when you
consider that they live in flocks and can overwhelm pairs of native birds with their sheer numbers.
If more people don't start trapping Starlings VERY SOON, all our native species will suffer
the same fate as bluebirds.
Thank you for what you are doing, Bill. It is gratifying to see that some people "get it".
@@ThereIsNoLord
Yep
Truth.
Can you come to my neighborhood an do that to the invasive cats here?
@@WhistlesToAnimals Ironic, your screen name
Not to mention how destructive they are to gutter boards and weak places in your soffits around the house
The starlings figured out my upside down suet feeder. They fight over it - but granted, the woodpeckers do get most of the suet!
I'm new to bird feeding and found your channel last night and absolutely love it! Youre very informative and entertaining with the bonus of a soothing voice and style. You're awesome. Thanks for making your videos and sharing your experience and knowledge. 😊😊
Well, if that isn't just the sweetest compliment to get, Carmelina. Thank you.
Lots of people patting each other on the back for killing birds. Perhaps it is a necessity at times but it's nothing to brag or high-five about.
My sentiments too.
If you don't have the stomach for it or the necessary skill with a pellet gun, it won't work for you, but it is quite interesting that some harassment from a shooter will discourage the pests and have no effect on the native birds.
We can thank Shakespeare for his unwanted gift of the starling...
Or thank the fool who decided to take Shakespeare's birds to the U.S.
I just found your channel and love it. I am going to try the upside-down feeder. Thanks for the idea. I remember in the mid 60’s we had an old, tall dead trunk of an Elm tree, remember those, in our back yard that my parents left there because the Flickers had chopped holes in it for nests. Every year we would find 3 or 4 dead baby Flickers on the ground as the Starlings moved in. I like all birds but it tough knowing that Starlings are doing this all the time to different birds.
Oh, I do you know what you mean. Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/1cHoOHhNOhA/v-deo.html But I also know that native birds do the same thing all the time. I watched Blue Jays raid a nest for eggs a couple of weeks ago, and House wrens puncture eggs just for the fun of it. 🤷♀️
Oh and one more thing: thanks for the compliment on my channel.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME The difference being, these birds evolved together, EXCEPT for Starlings and House Sparrows. Every one you see is the ghost of a native bird that could have been born. Which isn't acceptable.
Dad's old pellet rifle puts the puff on them! After they see a couple of their buddies go up in a cloud of feathers they stay away for a few days.
Others have suggested the same solution.
What a delightful and educational video !
I have a large suburban fenced backyard that gets flood irrigated by my neighbor.
I don't use pesticides or herbicides so I get to watch starlings, redwing and yellow headed blackbirds and starlings hunt in the shallow flooded yard every few weeks.
There is enough nesting habitat for all so my neighborhood starlings are welcome.
I run a line of starling and pigeon traps at a nearby feedlot.
They can destroy a lot of feed.
Canned fog food in funnel traps works great without attracting too much else.
I keep a local wildlife rehabber in frozen starlings to feed recovering hawks.
Peace
Interesting. I'll mention the traps to my husband in case he wants to try them. He does get annoyed with them, but I'm guessing he'll opt to put up with them rather than go to the bother of trapping them. He used to get really put out over how much bark butter they ate, because that stuff is pricey. But after I made a movie about birds on bark butter (ua-cam.com/video/ASE72moPGPU/v-deo.htmlsi=CaX0qmKtrvQ2Csya) and talked about the Starling problem there, a viewer gave me a recipe for homemade bark butter. It's cheap to make, and my husband switched to that, so he's less annoyed now about the Starlings.
I respect your opinion but if we dont do anything about this non-native species some of our native species will become extinct,eventually for sure and well before their time.great video ,awesome narration voice thank you.
Thank you, Bruce, not only for the vote of confidence in my opinion and my narration as well as for voicing your own concern civilly. (Not everyone is so polite about it.) I'm concerned to the point of near hopelessness about the future of all wildlife species in this country, and the culprit seems to be us with our pesticides and destruction of wild habitat. The harm done by Starlings is barely a blip in comparison. And even those concerns pale next to the coming destruction of species by climate change.
Loss of habitat, I agree, is killing the world's wildlife.
The biggest problems with starlings is not that they eat too much bird food at feeders or that their call is annoying. Why didn't you mention the more important fact that European Starlings are an exotic invasive species that harm native bird populations by killing native birds in their nest cavities and by out competing them for the nest cavities?
@@kirkbrode
A pellet prescription. Way more humane and selective than poisons or traps. Do our country and songbirds, etc a favor. Air rifles do a very good job with Sturnas Vulgaris.
The US government has asked that whenever you can safely and humanely dispatch these birds, please do so.
You can still buy an upside-down bird feeder...
@@toddmichaels42 Right. But why are you telling me things I either already know or are not relevant to me?
My point was the harm done by European Starlings to native bird populations is way more important than how much food Starlings eat at feeders.
Need to eradicate this type of bird. Trapping is the easiest way to thin the pest out. Takes patience and time. If you can not trap. Let them nest and rob the eggs just like chicken eggs are done. Trapper can collect 20 eggs a spring.
Sparrows are the same way. I have no blue birds because sparrows fight the blue birds for nesting boxes. I rob the sparrow eggs to. 20 eggs a spring into summer. Works just takes time. Later.
No no no. Dislike these birds immensely, and even though, before realizing that my new home had starlings, I went out and bought $200 worth of new feeders and mess free food, I’m going to go spend another $200 on more thistle tubes, upside down suet holders for my woodpeckers and lots of caged feeders. I don’t enjoy this nasty invasive species at all, and hate how they are destroying our native songbird populations.
You have company in that opinion, but that's not how I look at it. The Starlings do some damage to native species, but if Starlings were the only problem native species had, they'd be thriving. With some exceptions, loss of habitat and pesticides have done a number on North American wildlife. I hate to be pointing the finger at myself, but I don't see any other reasonable direction to point it. Yes, Starlings are numerous and hungry--and aggressive. But they are a pimple on the body of other wild birds, whereas the harms we humans do--without evil intentions!--are more akin to a slow growing cancer. So I tend to be somewhat forgiving of Starlings. They're just trying to get by. For that matter so am I. So are all of us.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME This is an absolutely ridiculous comment. Forest fires are a bigger problem to forests than littering, so I'm going to just litter, because forest fires will also happen. PEOPLE NEED TO BE SMARTER. Starlings should be shot or trapped in North America. Period.
@@ThereIsNoLord Amen sir! Amen! Keep preaching the gospel truth and educate these uneducated minds!
Or, ... You could spend another $200 on a Hatsan 95 pellet gun and eradicate the pests. I shoot a few every year in the spring and they stay out of our yard until the next spring.
Sorry but there is nothing enjoyable about these noisy, bullies...
Good morning! I wanted to tell you...I have seen 6 young starlings show up on my roof. Boy, do they have their work cut out for them. like a toddler trying to eat with chopsticks, watching them learn to use their beaks is both stressful and rewarding. I feed about 50 starlings a day, up to and over a hundred in the winter...and ya know what they really prefer over my bird food? cat food. I offer it for the crows as well, but it is my starlings preferred food, besides the occasional peanut butter and honey sandwiches. I spend about 12 dollars a week on a good brand and variety of cat food and they suck it up. Sizes and shapes do matter, and it took a little experimenting. It does not hold up in rain well, however, and so can be messy on those days.
You do realize that you're in the minority as far as helping Starlings survive, right? But even though I wouldn't do that, I can appreciate the pleasure you take from it--loved your line about the fledglings looking like toddlers trying to eat with chopsticks.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME Anyone that helps the starlings are the destroyer of native birds. These people are fools!
I keep them as pets. Starlings actually are nice pets and instead of the screaming you hear in this video they eventually, while in captivity, mimic your speech instead. Beautiful birds. I lower the population by taming them for captivity. Which is easy when they are babies
Another commenter told me much the same thing:
I'll start off by saying I am not the name listed and am a woman. Lily. And, I was not a bird person until 2 years ago when my starling found me. I'm assuming, by your comments, you have not had 1 on 1 experience with a Starling. THEY DO SING BEAUTIFULLY! Not the starling call you hear in the wild but any beautiful tune they pick up. Beethovan, Yiruma, tunes to any modern day song or even video game. They listen intently as you whistle, and repeat until they get it right. They have 2 voice boxes, so they can do a duet with themselves. They also learn HUMAN SPEECH! Not only to mimic but begin to understand certain words meanings.
They are like dogs with wings. They greet you when you come home, or when you get up in the morning and they hear the click of your door - there they are, flying up the stairs and on your shoulder. They hang out with you outside, sunbathe and catch insects (as that's 70% of their diet). They follow you around. Even when visiting other people or nursing homes and interact / spread joy to other people. They ride on your shoulder, take interest in music and what your watching on your tv or doing on your cellphone. They LOVE baths. It's very important for them to keep clean. They keep learning and outsmarting you. They fall asleep on your chest and wake up and fly up to their cage to sleep for the rest of the night.
Motzart had one that helped him compose some of his work.
If you search the internet, anyone who's ever had a starling (in this present day or past), you'll find they ALL LOVE THEM. Because it's SO EASY TO LOVE A STARLING. Anyone who's rescued one and had it as a pet..... their starling means SO MUCH TO THEM, they have such a strong bond!
Mozart had a pet starling.
Taming one bird out of millions is not a realistic idea for population control. 🤦🏻♂️
Considering starlings as pests mainly is matter of personal opinion.
People will still do with starlings what they personally think is need.
However, in altered ecosystem starlings still play a role as eating pest insects and being food for native predators, and efforts to reduce population give only short-term results.
More acrobatic action =more poop in so many more angles and places for my feeders I have never seen before
Well done as always.
Thanks--especially for the "as always" part.
I remember watching this video few months back thinking "sure glad I don't have this problem!". Fast forward to now the Starlings have discovered my backyard bird sanctuary. Really hope these savages don't ruin my birdwatching.
My condolences.
Shoot the damn things!
@@davidjenson4512 Haha that's exactly what I did! I ki-*ahem* humanely euthanized 12 of them and they haven't come back to my backyard since!!
@@Patrick-gd1eo And all their extended family heard about this and they won't be coming to your yard either.
They will sorry.
Sorry to any feel it's too extreme, but starlings are too numerous and too destructive (I've seen what they do to my local Violet Swallow nests - it's gruesome) for half measures. They are one of the few (if not only) animals that I will shoot if they become a problem. Birder in the UK and Europe can feed and enjoy starling visits all they like and I agree they are rather handsome and interesting.... But they wreak havoc here in N America and on my property they quickly learn not to come around.
I LOVE THESE ADORABLE BIRDIES!!!
It’s a nice change of pace to hear from someone who actually likes the starlings. Sorta balances out the comments from people who want to shoot them.
Great suet suggestion Jo. At the Central Park feeders we have large flocks of Common Grackles feasting on everything. They keep the smaller birds away until they've had their fill and depart. The only thing that seems to help is the feeder that's made with a perch that will throw the squirrels and Grackles off due to their weight. That and also the Cooper's Hawk ; )
I didn't realize that you'd be more likely to get Grackles in New York than Starlings as we do here in Missouri. Interesting. Anyway, Cathy, I felt a wry grin when you combined the feeder and the hawk as "The pest at the feeder control plan.." That got a chuckle. I figure I can pretty much choose whether to let the little devils bedevil me or whether to enjoy the zest for life these crude dudes have. I'm supposing that's how you feel? But we do what little we can do to minimize the pest birds.
Yes, whatever works - they eat up so much and this last cold spell was brutal. I'd rather see them then no birds and the others will show up as you note. We do get a lot of starlings in New York and they sometimes mix with grackles when they feed but not at the Central Park Feeders for some reason. Have a wonderful week Jo!
Thanks, Cathy. I willl have a busy (but wonderful) week starting to put the footage I just took in Costa Rica into some movies.
Nice!! Looking forward to seeing them.
I feed enough and don't discriminate. Starlings come and go at the most coldest of days and never been an issue. Survival is not a crime.
We are now living on my sister in law's dairy farm. There is no possible way we'd be able to get rid of our starlings. I don't mind them though.
See? That's a sane response to the inevitable. I like watching them squabble.
Robins chase away those pesky starlings, Robins for life!
👍
Robbins get bullied by starlings all the time here in the Northwest. The only way to prevent them from being bullied is using a quality air rifle.
@@GoreTorn16 I’ve seen robins chase away red belly woodpeckers.
@@billyschannel997 They'll chase them from time to time, but they won't gang up on them with 5 other Starlings and kill them outright. I've seen that multiple times.
I shot one and left it there. Two weeks later, some came back and I shot a big one and left it there, too. I have not seen another Starling since.
I wish it was legal for me to shoot starlings and house sparrows where I live, also the rodents that come into my yard, squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and groundhogs.
@@jvcyt298 Where do you live? Starling pesting requires no permit and there is no limit in most places.
This is the way.
Shooting them is the only thing I've found that's effective.
And then when they're upside down...Bam!...Problem over!
Starlings are a pain in the @rse
That got a smile. At least you are not a pain in the @rse like some of the other starling haters I hear from. (See Bill Zardus below and my reply to him.)
Jo Alwood I had blue tits, robins, blackbirds. Pigeons, crows, sparrows, jackdaws and blackbirds all singing nicely. Then the invasion happened and the other birds can’t get anything. Did try a video on UA-cam starlings in distress worked for 24 hours and now they just carry on feeding. I will pull all th feeders this weekend and hope they live elsewhere. Sad as I have blue tits and blackbird nesting in the hedge
Jackdaws and Blue tits? We don't get those; where do you live? One other commentor complained as you do that the starlings ran all the other birds away. That hasn't been our experience. Sure they are pushy at the feeders, but when they go away, the other birds have plenty of chances to feed. But since I haven't been in your yard, I don't know why things would be so different for you. And I sympathize with your remark that starlings are a pain in the @rse.
Jo Alwood In 🇬🇧 Starlings fly In and the food is gone, they leave the other birds return and there is nothing left. If you put more food out they return again sadly. Only recently have they started turning up but they are a pest
It's possible that is the problem would be solved if you put more food out. The other thing that might help you would be watching my movie about how to attract birds to your yard. The first part of the movie concentrates on feeders. Watching it might give you some ideas. ua-cam.com/video/2PLfBIge5vU/v-deo.html
Nope, traps and BB guns. Kill the unwanted invasive or they will out-compete your cardinals.
I never thought of under suet feeders , woodpecker are interesting, but what other birds like this type of feeder?
Thanks to your channel (and a few other birding content creators) you have inspired my girlfriend and I to start feeding the wild birds in our own backyard. We live in the Pacific Northwest and starlings can be a pain the neck. Thanks for the tips, and all the info you provide. I heard starlings have trouble gripping/standing on perches that are at a 45 degree angle, but the native birds don't seem to have trouble with it. Do you find that to be true?
The only place I've observed the 45 degree angle problem occurs when they try to walk on the roof of the suet feeder, as this movie shows. So I had never thought about it, but considering our suet feeder, I bet you're right. Anyway, it makes me beam to think that my movies would contribute to birds in your backyard getting fed--and admired! Thanks for telling me. You've probably already watched my two movies about how to attract birds to your backyard, but just in case you haven't here are the links. Part One: ua-cam.com/video/16eEu0J6n6Q/v-deo.html. Part Two: ua-cam.com/video/2Nbzrp5bIRM/v-deo.html.
i love starlings. they are so comical. i have those window feeders,and i am able to watch them from very close.they are hilarious birds.
Since I get so many angry comments about them with this video, it's nice to hear from someone who appreciates them. And I get that. They are entertaining.
Computer vision on a feeder's electrified roosts. Starling detected, zap. All others OK. Cats would gather around.
You are certainly determined.
My upside down suet feeder had it's suet block almost completely consumed by starlings in a 48 hour period. They did not seem to mind the extra effort. So, no more suet feeding for me in any container. As for woodpeckers, I can sometimes get those to eat off my seed block. The Starlings do not seem interested in that block.
Oh, believe me, I understand your frustration with those Starlings. Quite a few of my viewers have thought I was a fool to do anything short of just shooting them. I won’t do that, but as for hating them, I get it.
a flock of starlings eat a suet cake in a few hours. upside down helps. i put a shield on the cake so the only feeding is from the bottom, but the Pileated Woodpecker wont come around. i think a wide mesh screen with bottom entrance is best.
It's nice to hear from someone who is putting his mind and his energy into figuring out the best way to feed the birds.
Great suggestion! I feel the same way!
Nice to hear that you feel the same way. Some people loathe Starlings so much that they advise me to shoot them all. In fact, I'll get comments to that effect for this video.
Entertaining Narration
Thank You
Thank you. I wanted an entertaining narration for entertaining birds.
No thanks, you can keep all the starlings
Yeah, I do get that.
They crapped all over everything! My porch, my chairs……still trying to clean it up.
I know, I know. Birds will do that. Yecch.
First, I would like to say Hello Jo, since this is my first post on your channel. Secondly, starlings dont hang at my place because my suet feeder is the cheapest one you can buy (I think you know which one I mean), but I have plastic all around it. Maybe if I make a video, it will help birders and native birds alike....will do some day.
I'm going to post a movie tomorrow afternoon about the problems with keeping Starlings away from bark butter. This might be something I wish I knew more about. I asked my husband--he's the one who feeds our birds--if he knew what you were talking about. He said he might have used something like that a few years back, but he can't remember how effective it was. How much trouble is your arrangement and how effective is it?
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME Hello, I promise I will either get a Flickr picture hosting site going or make a video on this. I am behind on a couple of projects, but I am not forgetting you. I wish I had your video making skills at this moment, but I don't.
@@WhistlesToAnimals Thanks for the compliment on my video skills. Let me know when you've posted your footage somewhere accessible.
Starling lover here: I have several backyard feeders and birdbaths. I get tons of birds! And that includes starlings. Yes they are eager eaters, but there's a way to deal with them. Strategic distribution of the food around the yard is the way. Two suet stations, two regular birdfeeders, and sprinkling seed around the ground in specific areas. Result: Cardinals feeding on the ground and feeders, squirrels, sparrows and doves feeding on the ground, woodpeckers at one of the suet stations, starlings at the other one. Everybody seems to be happy. The occasional robins, mockingbirds, and blue jays come by. For them it's chopped grapes and peanuts. There's a cornucopia of winged creatures daily in my "sanctuary."
Frankly the starlings only visit in droves sporadically. I never mind the starlings. Without them, where's the personality? 🙂And there's a small crevice in one of my soffits where starlings raise their young from time to time. It is fine. Frankly the worst "problem" (if that's the way to say it) would be the hawks who visit and kill one of the birds.
You did a clear job of describing how you deal with Starlings, Sheena. And we spread the bird food out in much the same way you do. I didn't see any mention of bark butter in your description. That does seem to pull them into our yard in droves. My husband has even taken to putting the butter on a tree in the woods behind our house. The trunk is visible from the house. Starlings aren't woodland birds, so the first winter they didn't seem to be aware of it, and we had relatively few Starlings that year, maybe half a dozen at a time once in awhile.But they've discovered the new spot--I film them there in slomo--but the numbers in the yard haven't risen appreciably. Half a dozen or so is cool. They're beautiful in their own way, as well as entertaining. We've made our peace with them.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME I'll try the bark butter, sounds like another good way of dispersing food around for the birds. Thanks for the tip.
BTW, just to note, late afternoon in my backyard, I counted 35 cardinals, 4 blue jays, 3 chickadees, a friendly robin (whom I rescued and he likes to hang around), several doves, a woodpecker, many sparrows, and *two starlings!* The starlings always come in small groups, eat and chatter, and then leave.
So it was interesting that the most birds I get regularly are cardinals. Pretty soon it will be more robins. I'm glad you've made your peace with starlings.
Granted, all the bird seed and suet I buy puts a dent on my budget, but being generous with food out there seems to help things be *equitable for everyone.* --- Last week the hawks took out four of the birds. It seems the raptors are doing their part to eliminate songbirds, and curiously, the "anti-starling" people don't seem to mind that. Just my 2 cents. 🙂
@@SheenaRea We might get as many as 35 Cardinals some days, but's usually more like 15-20. You can't have too many. As for starting the bark butter, I'm happy to hear it. It's expensive, though, and we've started making our own for a little more than a tenth of the price. You'll find a recipe at the top of the comments section under my movie Birds on Bark Butter. Or you can just google recipes for bark butter.. Enjoy the results. But you probably will get a lot more Starlings. Just know that. in advance.
@@SheenaRea I'm sure the anti-Starling folks applaud when a hawk takes a Starling. My attitude is just that the hawks have to eat, and I'd prefer for them to get more Starlings than Mourning Doves. But nature isn't even that sentimental. She just lets everybody work it out.
How do you keep them from killing the other birds? 🤦🏻♂️🫵🏼🤪🤡
I was enjoying for a while feeding the exotic birds in my yard...Woody, blue, pretty red etc...then...the friggin starlings appeared 😠
About the only thing you can do, aside from using an air rifle, is cuss the guy that brought them over from Europe. 🤷
Thanks Jo! My next purchase. ;-)
At least I recommended something that won't break the bank. 😊
You clearly have a kind heart. For me I would love them only if they showed up one at a time.
Thanks. Really, though, it's not so much that I have a kind heart as that I hate to expend anger on something I can't change.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME So kind-hearted and wise as well :)
And humble. You forgot humble. And now that I've had to say it, I can no longer claim it. 😉
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME 🤣
@@lennytheleopard It's always nice to trade comments with someone who gets my sense of humor.
they got to live too
True.
My family named them "dumpster birds" i hate them one year they got into a can under my grill filled with grease and pooped nasty grease poop all over my boots
You've got lots of company, and I'm sure yours isn't the last "I hate them" kind of comment I'll get, Mike.
My neighbor calls Starlings the Section 8 of all bird species.
🤤 good one!
I don't think they''re handsome birds. They're only cute when they're not cleaning out my birdfeeders. I've got them under control at last. I get the entertainment of them trying to eat at my feeders without having to refill them a few times a day. By using the feeders where too much weight on the perch pulls the feeder port shut. One starling lands, starts eating and his friend sees that and lands next to him. The two of them are enough to close the port, and they can't figure it out. That's cute.
I smiled at your description of the port feeder. I should point out that putting up bark butter will bring in more Starlings. Take a look at my movie Birds on Bark Butter for more info on that topic.
I had tons of Starlings at my feeder and the other birds still kept coming. I actually find Starlings pretty and never had a problem with them.
I second all that, Lia. They do eat up an awful lot of food, though, and they do occasionally take a nest from a Red-bellied Woodpecker. (See this old movie of mine: ua-cam.com/video/D8qjm-wTZ6s/v-deo.html) I think they're pretty and I enjoy their screechy, brassy outlook on life.
I am one who said recently that starlings were not a problem for me. Well that has now changed. I only have a handful, but I found out it doesn’t take many to eat a lot and come back regularly all day. What is sad is that I live in town and probably don’t get as many species as you all get. My Woodpeckers have been hit or miss thru the years, but right now they are here and would like to keep them. So I have the choice of taking down suet and losing my woodpeckers but getting rid of starlings hopefully for good and pray my woodpeckers come back . Suet is cheap, a buck a piece. So not big financial loss for starlings eating most of it. But frustrating.
Starlings are so successful because they'll eat almost anything you put out for the other birds, not just suet. So controlling their population without ridding yourself of the others is a conundrum. I'm sorry to hear that you have the problem. You might check out the movie I just did about Bird on Bark Butter. It deals with one aspect of controlling the Starling population.
Just give woodpeckers nuts
Troyer makes a wonderful repeating starling trap....not cheap, but effective.
Lol my Mom hated starlings because they would ransack her feeders now I'm raising an orphan baby starling. They can talk and mimic other sounds. And they're pretty.
I get both points of view, April. If you browse through the comments on this video, you'll see the gamut--from people who just shoot Starlings to one or two that have raised them and that appreciate their intelligence, their ability to mimic.Sometimes I feel like your mom--like when they drive a bird I'm filming away from the food or steal a Red-belly's hard dug nest. But I also appreciate their beauty and understand that they're just doing what we are--trying to survive.
So...not helpful at all. For city slickers with balconies are there not squirrel and starling proof feeders? Can’t seem to find tube feeder cages anywhere in my area. What I need is a cage with spaces large enough for little birds to enter to place over cages I have on floor of balcony.
Oh how I detest these birds
Well dadgummit, I relish corresponding with my viewers, but right now I can't, not before the end of August. On the 13th I am having a stem cell procedure done to minimize my carpal tunnel syndrome. Until that has time to heal, I might occasionally type five or six words but usually I'll just paste this answer so that commenters will understand why I didn't respond specifically. Please know that I still enjoy reading your comments. Thank goodness the carpal tunnel doesn't keep me from filming--which I love doing!--but I've had to hire my granddaughter to edit movies for me. One way or another, I'll continue to post every Tuesday.
May be extermination of passenger pigeon is reason why starlings are so abundant, when passenger pigeon was common, attempts to create starling population failed.
nice video Jo
We went for years without Starlings harassing our feeders and now suddenly they are swarming us. It is not fair to the finches, Nuthatches, Titmouse, Cardinals, and the many others that we fed all winter. They won’t come near those savage birds. I am replacing most of my feeders with caged feeders. I already had one but I am getting a few others including a caged suet feeder since the upside down feeders do nothing to discourage them. I will keep one fly through feeder for the Cardinals.
The Safflower seed that so many suggest? It is a farce. Our birds leave it sitting in the feeder whenever we buy a mix with Safflower in it. I think it was an industry scam meant to sell the stuff to unsuspecting bird lovers. You never saw Safflower seed sold in the stores until a few years ago. Did birds just suddenly decide that they love it?? Buyer beware of every new thing on the market.
I sympathize about the Starlings and wish I could offer more helpful advice. I don't find, though, that they keep other birds from feeding. Most feeders sit empty quite a bit of the time, after all. For us the problem isn't that the other birds can't get to the food so much as that the Starlings just eat so much of it. As for safflower, my husband--who feeds the birds at our house--uses it and says the birds eat it. He wonders if you might have gotten a bad batch.
Get an air rifle. That has been a very effective solution for me.
Interesting, @ellietobe…I have a feeder just for safflower and it is VERY popular with my house finches and northern cardinals.
I knew a lady who had a pet starling. She raised it from a tiny chick.
The damn thing could talk !
Another person who commented on this video also had a pet Starling and praised its intelligence. As far as talking goes, could it say anything recognizable?
I wired up my bird feeder to and electric fence then brought the cord and plus inside where I sit at my computer looking out the window. So when a whole group of starlings arrived to eat all the food I plugged it in they got a shock experience But soon they told their friends and they would fly over and never land wanting to gobble up all the food. But keep watching sometimes a new batch will come around repeat this shock and all a few times does not take long for them to learn to leave your bird feeders alone. Also try sprinkling feeding on the ground whole corn and large sunflower seeds not the oiled small type Cardinals love both along with woodpeckers and Blue jays .
@spooky kattWell that's how it is and if its to much for your little puss system to take then to F___King bad .
😂 I don’t hate the birds I just cannot afford to feed the gut heads!! They can empty my three feeders in minutes, so totally understand the reasoning behind the shock! It doesn’t kill the bullies; it trains them to stay away.
I think Starlings are actually beautiful! Especially when sunlight reflects off them. They are know to be great mimickers, even sound like telephones rings if they hear it enough! On an interesting note they didn’t exist in the US until about about 1890. The story goes that they were brought here by a Shakespeare fan who wanted to have every bid mentioned by him in his books, little did he know what the outcome would be! All this said around here in north Alabama they are a seasonal bird so we only have to put up with them for short periods of time. They also create murmurations that are a sight to behold on a clear winters afternoon! I have read that they dont like safflower seeds so I go heavy on that in my seed mix and it seems to work. Love them or hate them they are here to stay so you’ll have to accommodate them or give up feeding all birds while they’re around, something I think would be a shame.
It's a treat to hear from a Starling fan. And not only do I agree with you about them being beautiful (and was aware of the history of their arrival in the States), but I even posted a film last fall about Starling murmurations: ua-cam.com/video/26GD6u1IZYA/v-deo.html
Well if you judge wild animals by what they look like, then I guess you must really like the spotted lantern fly,
right dipshit ?
a giant flock is not so appealing
We also have Magpies. They aren't a problem. In fact they chase the starlings away. Don't seem to like them at all.
Would you mind sending a few of those magpies over Missouri-way? 😏
My starlings keep dying of lead poisoning.
It is the darndest thing!
Fun fact: Bluebirds will attack a wounded Starling....it is hilarious and gratifying.
So you have a gifr for direct action ... and subtlety as well. Good combo.
I've watched a Bluebird decisively run a Starling away from his nest box. They're not always sweet little pumpkins.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME i heard two-holled nest boxes work well in giving native birds chance against sparrows (users do not need to shoot and trap at all)
I have done that before when sparrows were overwhelming me, I’ve taken everything away except for safflower. Squirrels, sparrows, starlings don’t like. But will lose woodpeckers. Am going to take suet out overnight and put back in afternoon and see if that helps.
Wild Birds Unlimited has various feeders designed to allow woodpeckers to eat while frustrating Starlings. My husband has tried them and found them disappointing, but another viewer tells me that he's had success with them.
@Bill Doty you can dangle thin gauge metal wire around your feeders to deter House Sparrows -- this spooks them but doesn't spook native birds. Google "magic halo sparrow spooker" for ideas. For Starlings, caged feeders keep them out.
my Squirrels are not happy. Can Starlings breathe underwater?
Why would starlings make your squirrels unhappy?
I have more than 50 starlings and tried everything in the book. Infact, I no longer see other birds because of these " flying rats ".
It is sad and extremely expensive to keep up with them just to see a few pigeons that try to pick leftovers, even then they fly away very quickly.
Sorry, I detest starlings because they have deprived me of the wonderful variety of different birds that used to come and feed on pole feeders, feeders in trees and bushes etc.
No more......cannot take the hustle and expence.
What a frustrating, maddening, sad situation. The Starlings in our yard are annoying, but we don't have anything like the trouble you have with them. I sympathize. Some of my viewers are adamant that they should be shot, and I'd understand it if you felt the same way.
Jo Alwood,
Unfortunately we are not allowed to shoot them in England, U.K..
Anyway, to be honest : as a medic I could not face killing a living thing. Sounds silly but I would rather be deprived of the joy of watching all birds eating......if only that were possible !
Kind regards.
@@apollonia6656 Oh, I understand. And I appreciate your dilemma.
You should catch them and give em the ole wackweroo. Sorry.....they are evil and invasive f them in the a.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME only put your feeder out late afternoon and take it in every evening. Should cut down on the amount you see considerably
Starlings are not liked where I live as well. I don't have a starling problem at my feeders but Steller Jays! I've found putting finely chipped sunflower seeds in the feeders help as they can't get much in their beaks and give up the ghost sooner rather than later. Beautiful birds though, Steller Jays.
Love the way you dealt with the problem.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME I enjoyed your video, screeching squawking starlings and all. Thanks.
Glad to hear it, Heather.
Or you could just shoot em all and make some nice starling stew!
An interesting take on Starlings. I will try the hanging suet feeder. I have a neat little inclosed mealworm feeder. My Carolina wrens feed there all the time . I will admit I HATE starlings. I agree , we must keep feeding our birds and not let starlings discourage us. !!!🤔👍
As the descendant of uninvited foreigners myself (Europeans), who've done FAR worse damage to wildlife on this continent than Starlings could ever do, I try not to get bent out of shape about them. I think of them as beautiful and entertaining, if rather hoggish at the feeders. Shrug.
Very true and very well put . Those starlings are pretty tuff costumers . No need to stress over what we cannot change. 😉 I just love your videos!! 🙆♀️
It's nice to know that my sermonette found fertile ground, Pamela. If you look through the comments on a movie I did about Starlings taking a nest away from a Red-bellied Woodpecker, you'll see plenty of: "You moron! You oughtta shoot Starlings on sight!" I usually just sigh and don't answer them. Why bother?
Great attitude!
THANK YOU! This movie gets mostly negative comments from Starling haters. Your comment is a refreshing change.
The only sure way to get rid of a flock of starlings is to just stop feeding the birds when the weather isn't too cold. When the starvation period ends, put up feeders with small enough entry points that do not allow the starlings to enter. Amazon offers a number of bird feeders that are reasonably priced. You might have a few stragglers, but the flock will move on. If you feed them, they will multiply and take away the nesting sights of the more desirable native birds such as the bluebirds and cardinals and a variety of different sparrows. I don't believe in shooting birds of any kind. I am convinced in shooting starlings you will begin to have lots of bad luck. I have seen this happen to manhy shooters. You don't want to be the next one to fall off a ladder . They can be dealt with but it does take some time, energy and ingenuity. The idea is to drive the big flocks south where the weather is mostly warm and the fields are open and then can feed all they want.
We find the Starlings to be pests mainly because they eat so much bird food, and we do the things you suggest but not as devotedly as you do. That's okay with us because both my husband and I find them beautiful and often entertaining. The birds they hurt as far as nesting goes are only the cavity dwellers, like Bluebirds. They love to take over woodpecker holes. But then again, no great harm. We have lots of woodpeckers anyway. You might want to check out a couple of movies I made on that topic: Red-bellied Woodpecker Defends Nest from Starlings (ua-cam.com/video/D8qjm-wTZ6s/v-deo.html) and Flicker and Starling Fight (ua-cam.com/video/1cHoOHhNOhA/v-deo.html).
🤦🏻♂️🫵🏼🤡🤪
They kill bluebirds ,woodpeckers,cardinals, swallows. Are you NEW ?
I like Starlings, came here to figure out what to feed them :)
They like nuts, suet, and meal worms. As for seeds, they don't have a strong bill for cracking seeds open, so don't give them sunflower seed or safflower seed. And they don't like thistle/Nyjer.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME I really did not expect a reply so quickly, Thank you so much!
Gun powder. !!!!
Invasive non native birds that displace native birds don’t deserve your sympathy.
. ? Not sure what bird seed your eating but the starlings drive away all the birds we are trying to feed.
I'd say the Starlings do and they don't drive away other birds. We have tons of birds despite the Starlings. It's true that the Starlings come in numbers and dominate the feeders while they're there, but the other birds can always find the food they want in our yard. Even so, we do resent how much food these bossy birds eat.
I had starlings kill my bluebirds while they were brooding. They destroyed the eggs as well. I felt responsible in some way, because I read about the problems starlings create and payed no attention to it. For all of you who find starlings pretty birds and like them, wait till you have to clean out the bluebird box of dead birds. Tell me how much you like them then
I'd love to be rid of them, but since we're not willing to shoot them or to quit feeding birds, I choose to shrug and try to appreciate their dark beauty. It's not that I don't sympathize about your dead Bluebirds. I'd be grinding my teeth over it just like you. At least the Bluebird population is doing well, thanks to bluebird houses (ua-cam.com/video/BgPWt6fevrw/v-deo.html). And keep in mind that crows and bluejays love to eat the eggs of other birds. I doubt they'd kill an adult Bluebird, though. That happened because Starlings are cavity nesters, and they wanted the cavity the Bluebirds had.
No animal is a "pest", they're just being animals. If anything, the real pest is humans. Destroying millions of acres of forests, hunting and killing thousands of species of animals & birds, raising and keeping animals captive. We have a conscious and should discern right from wrong. Animals and birds are just trying to survive.
Actually, I agree with you. But when other animals interfere with what I want (like taking more of the food I put out than I want them to), I get impatient or even angry. But you're right.
Just a flying rat
They might entertain you, but they crap everywhere! All over the steps, railing, driveway, cars, side of house, windows, etc. I hate them! Like drunken sailors, they come in and trash the place and waste food.
Awesome 😅
Very good , film🤔
Happy Sunday to you 😘
Renato RS 🇧🇷 BRASIL
These birds are a nuisance you don't have to put up with. Be thankful for that, Renato.
Ok I’ll be shooting starlings on sight now. No mercy.
Many of you have no problem killing living things, apparently. I could never kill any bird in my yard. I don't like how much money I waste on feeding the starlings, but it isn't their fault they're here. A bunch of ignorant people acted without thinking, releasing them in Central Park back in the day. Same with sparrows. They're here now, trying to survive like the rest of the birds. I don't like them either, but I'll continue to put food out and leave them be. Donations are welcome since they go through about twenty pounds of food a day in the winter 😉
Holy cow! And I thought we spent a lot on bird seed.
I appreciate your take on the Starlings, Allie. I let people who disagree with me on this site say so, and I answer them respectfully .... almost always. Other times I ignore remarks that are rude. But I do understand why people get bent out of shape about these pests. Starlings and House Sparrows try our patience--and our pocketbooks. But they're not not villains; they're just surviving like all the other bird species in the yard. Bottom line is that we just gotta deal with these pesky birds and look for their redeeming qualities ... if any. And as I said in this film, I think the Starlings can be beautiful and entertaining. In a video I did about Starlings taking the nest hole of a Red-bellied Woodpecker, I mocked the Starlings--but in a good humored way, because I don't hate them. I'm sure annoyed by them sometimes, though.
In the south we have great huge ginormous flocks of starlings. They are nasty. In this scenario there is one no fail true blue easy solution. It is: Whistling Moon Travelers bottle rockets. You can find em at any fireworks stand. A bundle will last for years. Each year when they herd up and visit my trees I'll fire off a Whistling Moon Traveler. Gone gone birdies! After the cycle is repeated 4 or 5 times the word gets around and no more starling infestation...in my area, anyway. I sort of look forward to this time (late winter/spring) each year so I can get out my bottle rockets.
Practical fun, eh? Does this solution keep other birds away?
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME Hi Jo. Nope. Got lots of birds. But scramming those flocks of diseased pooping starlings is fun. Gotta admit that. I have seen those things take flight and leave huge limbs bouncing up and down on my 90 foot oak. Impressive. Hee hee! Starlings aren't dumb. They catch on pretty quickly. Easier pickins elsewhere.
@@OvGraphics I gotta say that’s an interesting solution.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME His solution will injure, kill, frighten away other birds too.
My strategy, here in the UK, is to have all my feeders near the window where I sit at the computer. We currently have a small flock of greedy starlings, which is bad news for our little blue tits, sparrows, dunnocks - and especially the 2 robins; I recently got the male robin to feed from my hand, twice. So if I see the starlings stealing the little bird's food, I open and shut the curtains, or flap my arms, and they all fly off. Then the little birds come back. Sometimes if they are all in the neighbour's tree, I bang on the glass to scare them off.
People here in the States are quick to inform me that Starlings aren't native here--and that that is why they are such a problem. But I've heard from you Brits often enough about the issues you have with them to know that they are pretty much a bane wherever they are. Good luck controlling them.
Just changed my whole viewpoint on Starlings. Maybe I give them a separate feeder just for entertainment value. Thanks for filming, Andy
I love your comment! I do get tired of hearing from people who hate Starlings.
I don't get woodpeckers I never have
Too bad. And all the more reason for you to avoid putting out foods that attract those ravenous, messy Starlings.
@@JoAlwoodBIRDSANDTHENSOME the only reason I put suet and mealworms out is because of the little birds robins blue tits blackbirds wrens but the starlings just wolf every thing down before they get a chance it's incredibly annoying and I have to spend a lot of money to buy feed to the point I've tried starling proof feeders but they've never worked I might try to DIY one but probably usless
Some people kill them..
So I regularly hear in the comments section of this movie.
This sounds more like a defence for the Starlings in a court of law than any helpful suggestions to deter them lol.
They are a nuisance because they are greedy. Our poor tiny birds get nothing now.
Here in the UK there are just way too many. I would never want to call for these animals to be killed but without other options to deter a specific species like this to give others a chance what options are left?
If they could behave respectfully like the small birds do taking turns there would be no problem
Haha. You’re right about “defense of Starlings in a court of law”. I just choose to enjoy what there is about them to like since we can’t seem to get rid of them without getting rid of all the other birds as well. I wouldn’t have the heart to kill them off myself, but I understand anybody that wants to.
Got Starlings in my 2nd floor awning and they have babies now. Ugh!
How to rid these guys without wifey finding out
I keep a tropical fish tank in our garage for drowning them.
That's the most humane method I could think of.
@@ccdogpark my wife find the that out I'd be Tied a cinder block at the bottom of our pool. They're gone now but they always come back.
They covered the area where they use to come but it doesn't help my neighbor with his bird feeder.
@@ABN6565 During the Spring go pick their eggs and destroy them or cover their eggs in vegetable oil. The oil would suffocate the developing fetus before it can hatch, which would result in an infertile egg.
.177 fixes
Or a .22 Crossman.
You can't get rid of starlings they need to eat too they're creatures of the Earth I wish people would stop being so mean. I have one that I had to rescue from a 3 day old baby hes now over 2 months old he cannot be released into the wild so he will be a pet unfortunately not what I wanted. But I have compassion for all living creatures and I will not discard anything these are God's creatures And as humans we have no right. What an amazing world this would be if we lived it God's way.
I'd prefer to have far fewer Starlings than we get. Of course you're right about them needing to eat, but they eat quite a bit. What's more they take nest holes away from other birds. But I also understand your attitude. I'm not one of the "shoot a few of them and the rest will learn to stay away" crowd.
Nope... starlings still suck!
I get it.
No. Just No. There is nothing attractive about these birds. They have no redeeming features. I refuse to let them eat me out of house & home and keep the other birds away. They mostly come in late winter and into spring. I find that if I take the feeders in for a few days they forget about my area for a while. But they come back. Most of my feeders have smaller perches and no seed trays for them to get a hold. It’s a battle but at least it’s not year round. They’re usually gone by summer bothering somewhere else!
I'll start off by saying I am not the name listed and am a woman. Lily. And, I was not a bird person until 2 years ago when my starling found me. I'm assuming, by your comments, you have not had 1 on 1 experience with a Starling. THEY DO SING BEAUTIFULLY! Not the starling call you hear in the wild but any beautiful tune they pick up. Beethovan, Yiruma, tunes to any modern day song or even video game. They listen intently as you whistle, and repeat until they get it right. They have 2 voice boxes, so they can do a duet with themselves. They also learn HUMAN SPEECH! Not only to mimic but begin to understand certain words meanings.
They are like dogs with wings. They greet you when you come home, or when you get up in the morning and they hear the click of your door - there they are, flying up the stairs and on your shoulder. They hang out with you outside, sunbathe and catch insects (as that's 70% of their diet). They follow you around. Even when visiting other people or nursing homes and interact / spread joy to other people. They ride on your shoulder, take interest in music and what your watching on your tv or doing on your cellphone. They LOVE baths. It's very important for them to keep clean. They keep learning and outsmarting you. They fall asleep on your chest and wake up and fly up to their cage to sleep for the rest of the night.
Motzart had one that helped him compose some of his work.
If you search the internet, anyone who's ever had a starling (in this present day or past), you'll find they ALL LOVE THEM. Because it's SO EASY TO LOVE A STARLING. Anyone who's rescued one and had it as a pet..... their starling means SO MUCH TO THEM, they have such a strong bond!
I don't have the personal experience you do with Starlings, Lily, but I have read about all the traits you mention. Maybe one of these days I'll do a video about their virtues, but I'd do it knowing that I would get multiple hateful comments. People get vicious about these birds.We only try to keep them to a minimum in our yard because they do eat up a large amount of the food we put out.
Wow! Very good to know Lily! Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful experience with a Starling. I just noticed a family of them yesterday at my feeders and today I watched the same family of Starlings visiting and they really do love to take baths. I watched this group of siblings bathing together for at least 5 different times. They were so much fun to watch.
I don't blame you for using a pseudonym.
If I was writing nonsense like this, I would be using a pseudonym too.
Does your shrink know you are off your meds again ?
Our little, 5 years old, granddaughter loves them, she said they have to eat to, 😍
I like your granddaughter's attitude!
Tell her the native birds have to eat too and the starlings are eating all of their food and their babies!