# Battling the Grackles



## stcyrwm (Apr 20, 2005)

My birdfeeders are being overtaken by Grackles - it's like the movie "The Birds". I've had so many different cool birds at my feeders and now a flock of Grackles is keeping them all away all day long. OK if I can beat algae I can beat these Grackles. Step 1 Set up suet feeder to be accessible from bottom only. Step 2 Block off top two openings in tube feeders so only bottom one is available for small birds only. Step 3 Set up other feeder with perch that drops away if a fat bird gets on it and stays in place for small birds. 

If anyone has any other suggestions experience I'd love to hear it.

Fish, plants, birds, shrimp - life is good. 

Bill


----------



## Cavan Allen (Jul 22, 2004)

I think those ideas sound fine. Grackles are always more of a problem for me than squirrels. That's part of why I don't have a feeder up right now. But I will be doing something similar when it goes back up.


----------



## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

DO NOT READ PICSESGIRL!

A decent airgun with some pointed pellets took care of my starling problem after a couple seasons. Not a one has come back since.


----------



## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

Thank you so much for the warning Grandmasterofpool! -- I stopped reading right there


----------



## stcyrwm (Apr 20, 2005)

Cardinals are back this morning  . On top of that, it is almost as much fun watching the grackles get bounced (hehe). The fat bird perch flipper is working. Ha and as I write the catbird, one of my favorites, has just returned. 

As for pellet guns, well I'm within city limits so that is not an option for me. I will be trying a starling nestbox trapping system next spring though.


----------



## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

Come on guys violence is not the answer when it comes to any animal, even those annoying Grackles.

I have the same problem this time of year with starlings, they eat everything up. But I have learned to live with it, they have to eat too. Besides they will be gone before long.

I have found that they really like bread so I keep that thrown on the ground to keep them away from the feeders.


----------



## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

Well, in my defense starlings do not belong in North America at all as they are not indigenous to this continent. It is quite legal to kill them and I live in a relatively rural area. Obviously this is not a solution for city folk!


----------



## Cavan Allen (Jul 22, 2004)

That's correct. Grackles may not be killed (at least in normal circumstances), but starlings are not afforded the same protection. The latter are big trouble for a lot of native birds because of nest hole competition (they will evict birds already nesting). Red headed woodpeckers have been negatively affected even more than most. Every less starling is a plus for the rest of the birds we see.


----------



## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

The other birds may be better off, but I just can't kill another living creature.


----------



## An t-iasg (Jun 3, 2005)

The grackles in my area have left. They are a pain in early summer, but then they move on. I have an Absolute feeder, single-sided. Here is a link if you haven't seen one before.

It has an adjustable bar for a perch. (The squirrels did chew through the wooden perch that it came with. I added a metal bar.) You can set the adjustment weight from 2 to 8 ounces. During the time that the grackles are here, I set the weight (just turn some screws) to 2-3 ounces, so only the lighter, smaller birds can feed. When the grackles leave, I set the weight to 6-7 ounces, and a whole row of little finches can feed at once. I use hulled sunflower seed in this feeder. I have another tube feeder, filled with safflower seed, that the grackles seem to ignore. I have suet in a black wire "cage", with no other wood around it or anything else to perch on. The grackles do get at it, but not that much. They seem to lack the dexterity to hang on for any length of time.

The Droll Yankees brand of feeders have several models designed to deter squirrels. It sounds like you have one, if you have a tube feeder that the perches drop away with a heavier bird. Some Droll Yankees feeders also spin when they detect a heavier weight. The video in the bird store showed the squirrel being spun off! I wonder if that would work for a grackle.


----------



## dspadafore (Mar 29, 2005)

Grandmaster is quite correct about Starlings. Your local Game & Fish will tell you that Starlings, city Pigeons ( a Dove I belive) and House Sparrows, sometimes called English Sparrows are not given protection because they are introduced species. Even if you live within city limits you can pop them off with a pellet gun. I know it may sound cruel, but non-native species competing with native species is a huge problem in worldwide.
Dave


----------

