🚀 go-pugleaf

I know all of you Hummingbird experts already do this, place feeders
out of sight of another because of territory issue.  I was wondering
what kind of experiences others have had with regular feeders.

A couple of years ago I noticed that the Cardinals were having a
problem getting to the one hanging feeder I had going at the back of
the house.  The sparrows, Grackles, Blue Jays etc.  seemed to
monopolize it fiecely.  I had even seen a famale Gardinal being
hounded around the yard by a Jay and some Grackles everytime she tried
to get a turn at the feeder.  I had seen both the male and female kind
of sneak in under the lilac tree (the feeder hangs over the lilac) and
hope for the best.  I had also noted that the Cardinals spent a lot of
time between attempts at the feeder sitting in the Cedar Hedge on the
south side of the house.  The hanging feeder was on the second story
level at the west side.

I then placed a small hanging feeder inside the Cedar Hedge on the
south side and it seemed as if the Cardinals knew it was for them
right away.  Within 24 hours they were feeding at the little white
wooden feeder exclusively and have ever since.  It was only a tiny
feeder that has to be re-filled several times a day so my husband made
a larger one and hung it in the hedge right under the small one.  But
that first pair of Cardinals always stuck to that first tiny one as if
they had claimed it permanently.  We started to get other Cardinals
that would feed at the larger one, so we got the idea that cover was
definately the first priority of Cardinals when looking for a suitable
feeding spot.  They certainly perfered it to fighting the other birds
on the west side of the house.

We then put up a third larger feeder on a pole close to the kitchen
door which had cover on three sides, but was more out in the open and
suddenly the Blue Jays, Chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers and Purple
Finches started to use that one exclusively.  They left the hanging
west side feeder to the Grackles and sparrows, and although it was
only about 4 or 5 feet away from the Cedars and the Cardinal's
favorite feeder, the Cardinals wouldn't go near it.

This past summer my husband built a second much larger west side
feeder that's on a pole.  It holds the most seed and it seemed as if
the Grackles claimed it for themselves until I've recently found
Nuthatches and Hairy Woodpeckers using it.  The Mourning Doves gave up
on the Lilac feeder as well and started hanging around under the
feeder on the pole.

I find it very curious as to why certain birds attach themselves to
feeders in different areas.  Especially why Nuthatches use feeders and
suet on the west side and Downy and Chickadees only use the suet and
feeders at the south side.  I've been hearing the Hairy Woodpeckers
for months, but I couldn't figure out what bird was giving off that
call until recently when I spotted Hairy Woodpeckers in the backyard
on the West side, the better suet is kept at the south side because I
had only seen Downys coming to the south everyday.  I just keep one
hanging basket of high enery suet at the back and had been treating
the Downys with peanut butter and cherry suet.  Why wouldn't the Hairy
Wps and Nuthatches what to sample the good stuff?

Anyhow, I've come to the conclusion that placement is everything.
There is far less human traffic on the west side because we watch the
birds through the windows back there, and since all the south feeders
are close to the kitchen window and door, we stand at the screens and
watch the birds from only a few feed away.  Now I'm wondering what
would happen if I were to place a feeder at the far end of the yard
near the pine trees, would a different variety adopt that feeder.   I
imagine they would, even the crows might be bold enough to use it.
They have landed under the pole feeder on the West side quite often
when they think nobody is looking...;)

Well, if nothing else, I plan to put some tasty suet at the back of
the yard for those shy Hairys and Nuthatches, it never ceases to amaze
me how much we can learn if we just sit quiet and watch, those
feathered friends seem very willing teach us what's what.

Lynda