How to stop large birds raiding bird feeders
Large birds can be a nuisance to smaller birds who you intended to attract, thus its vital to stop them on bird feeders or else the issue can only get worse.
How to stop large birds raiding bird feeders can depend on small, compact bird feeders only of which, larger birds can't perch to feed. Better than that is squirrel proof bird feeders as bigger birds can't pass between the cage. In the end you may want to erect a bigger bird feeding area to feed off their hunger.
Unfortunately, even the largest birds can get at bird feeder food, thus you must realize it isn't always possible to stop every last nuisance big bird accessing feeders.
But it can begin by removing all open to all platform bird feeders while dismantling mounted bird dishes in which, larger birds like to perch on at the bird feeder pole in particularly for leverage - or if to use an adjacent branch if feeders are hung up in a tree.
How to keep pigeons off bird feeders is simple as, whereby smaller nuisance birds like Starlings or Blackbirds to be kept off bird feeders can make work of it.
With that, my advise mostly refers to stopping large birds raiding bird feeders like Pigeons, Doves, Crows, Jays and Catbirds to name a few - heck, you'd also have no real issues of keeping Hawks off bird feeders due to their awkward size.
Utilize super small bird feeders that are far to compact for the birds mentioned to use, whereas open top trays can still be used providing its covered in a low down dome.
You can't feed common backyard birds without a feeder if you wish to stop larger birds eating the bird food. What we can do then is cater to larger birds with seed mixes if it means they are distracted.
Never feed Pigeons or continue to feed larger birds if the issue gets worse, although to provide their own ground or open to all feeding area on a platform can stop them eating the bird food in feeders.
No bird feeders are needed at all in fact with larger birds, thus to throw bird seeds on the ground is all that is needed.
Better idea than that is throwing bird food under the feeders to be sure bird food is found and eaten up before it rots.
Utilize small bird only feeders
One way to stop large birds raiding your bird feeder collection is to cut them off at the point of the feeder.
How to do that is to utilize small compact bird feeders, designed to attract and feed small common backyard birds only - with all but Finches, Warblers, Sparrows and Goldfinches accessing the bird food.
What both large and small birds have in common are their all seed-eating birds, thus there's no way to cater to one size bird without the others joining in.
Or is there... in fact you can cater to mostly Finches in your yard with the very best Nyjer seed feeder money can buy.
Nyjer seed can also be labeled as thistle seed in which this small black seed is liked most by small birds only.
Bird feeders for thistle seeds usually come with a tray attached on the base; you must buy any kind of bird seed feeder without a tray as it becomes an easy perching place for larger birds.
Where else you can turn to is the long clear tube style seed feeder which can kick off large birds as the perches are far too short.
Squirrel proof feeders stop large birds
What is essentially the best way to keep squirrels off bird feeders can be in someway how you'd stop larger birds raiding any bird feeder in use in your yard.
Do you wish to keep larger birds off what is an open to all suet cake-filled bird feeder? No issue at all then as a suet cake bird feeder can be encased in a squirrel proof suet bird feeder - it really is that simple.
Similarly, a clear tube seed feeder which is the target of large birds can be positioned in the center of a squirrel proof cage.
Squirrel proof bird feeders can stop most nuisance large birds at bird feeders, but remember any bird feeder must be center-positioned far out of the way of the cage - or else bird food will remain within reach.
Whilst larger birds will poke their heads in to at least try and feed, smaller birds can hop in the cage to access the bird food.
How you'd stop ground eating birds accessing bird food on the ground is by similarly covering the ground bird feeder with a squirrel proof cage.
Great to stop Blue Jays swarming the bird food on the lawn, but more importantly it will keep Pigeons, Starlings to even Hawks off normally an accessible to all ground bird food.
Never allow leverage for larger birds to perch or stand on an opposite branch or bracket, as it can render any kind of squirrel proof bird feeder useless.
Erect larger bird feeding area
Rather than thinking up ways to stop large birds inevitably raiding accessible to all, all size bird feeders - let's instead feed the nuisance large birds.
I am not talking about feeding Pigeons who are bound to poop all over the yard while making a mess of bird feeders, certainly not.
Where the idea of erecting feeders for larger birds only comes from, will make sure wanted common backyard birds can still eat - such as Blue Jays or similarly Northern Cardinals - would be opening up their own bird feeding area.
As these ground feeding birds tend to struggle at bird feeders hung up in a small, compact bird feeder, if you want to divert them you'd need to open up this area to all.
What you can do then is setup larger birds own platform bird feeder on a pole or better still - a platform on the ground - in which you'd probably be best to avoid a restricting hanging style platform bird feeder.
Want to keep large birds off bird feeders intended for smaller birds only? Well, the answer to the riddle could be actually feeding larger birds.
Large birds can still be seen coming to your existing small bird setup, only fewer larger birds will be seen raiding the feeders while no longer eating up the bird food in days.
Scatter bird food under feeders
Larger birds as expected tend to be ground feeding birds in the wild, as their size would make it difficult for them to eat on what are mostly too small bird feeders.
With that in mind, the best way to hang bird feeders is on a pole or bracket that can limit larger birds use. But that isn't going to be enough as additional deterrents must be put in place - and like I previously said, which is too feed them.
Where you place your bird feeders in your yard will probably be on a bird feeder pole or if the feeders are hung up on a tree branch.
Great then, because that means we can scatter bird food under feeders in a way to keep larger birds fed - while giving them no reason to tackle a hard to use feeder.
Bird food can be thrown anywhere over the lawn, but what can be a better idea than that is doing it strategically.
What I mean is, to scatter bird food under hanging bird feeders would will be an area that is guarantee to attract larger birds who commonly raid your feeders.
Rather than see bird food thrown randomly over the ground which can go to waste as it rots - larger birds can clean up under bird feeders with bird food you purposely added, or indeed the bird food smaller birds throw on the ground out of feeders.
Don't stop large birds eating bird food when the solution can be to feed them a cheaper selection of bird seed mix to satisfy their hunger.
Conclusion
What better way to stop large birds raiding bird feeders, and therefore eating up the bird food in a matter of days, than storing bird food in hard to use feeders.
Utilize small bird, compact bird feeders only as larger birds like Jays and certainly Pigeons stand little chance of perching - let alone eating any of the bird food.
Certain bird feeders won't stop larger birds as their designed to cater to all, thus a suet cake bird feeder for example will have to be switched with a squirrel proof suet feeder instead.
What that will lead to is smaller birds can keep eating while larger birds are kept out of reach of suet, seeds or nuts at the center of this squirrel proof bird feeder.
Large birds can still be seen attempted to raid bird feeders regardless of deterrents you may have in place; thus the idea to feed larger birds to starve off hunger can result in them never needing to access your bird feeders at all.
To feed large birds you may want to avoid predatory or nuisance birds but you'd still want to feed Blue Jays right?
Well, you can by throwing bird seeds or dried mealworms on the ground if kept well away from your feeders you wish to stop larger birds accessing.
Better yet, why not scatter bird food under the bird feeders because this way we can guarantee the food will be found - yet the larger birds or indeed the exclusive smaller ground feeding bird species can still eat if they're unable to use feeders hung above.
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