starlings

[Wifezilla]

Caught the ducks chasing the starlings. Don't think they will be a problem this year...LOL

 

[Brunty_Farms]

I really never paid any attention to them as I only see a few here and there. After reading this post a couple of days later I see this shadow. I thought it was a big cloud or something, then I heard the noise....... I looked out the window to find at least an acre covered with these little black birds with brown speckles on thier feathers........ they sure were noisy and there sure was a lot of them. Rough guess would be at least a couple thousand easy.

They all took off at once, pretty neat to see and to watch. I couldn't imagine them getting into a bag of chicken feed. I bet this flock could devour a bag in 5 minutes...

What a sight.

 

[scooter147]

It was one of those lazy winter weekends, so I had time on my hands and sat a lot in my dining room looking down at my coops. Well the starlings were having a field day going in and out of the pop door (I tried the strips of towels over the door but the chickens refused to go through them) so I spent a lot of time "protecting" my feed.
Over the two days I killed 166 starlings that I was able to trap in the coop. Unfortunately it is only a drop in the bucket to the number that are currently around the nieghborhood. I am hoping that I can eliminate some of the smart ones who have figured out how to get into the coop through the pop door.

 

[lostsoulhelpmejebus]

I am having the same issue with starlings...they gain access through the pop door. They crap all over everything and I mean everything...even the chickens themselves. Our 13 chickens usually consume half of our hanging feeder in a 24 hour period...now the feeder is empty every night at chore time. Tried hanging towel strips and even plastic strips across the doorway...made no difference. The darned things are eating as much or more than my chickens and leaving a huge, stinky, poopy mess. Any other suggestions beside shooting them or clubbing them to death?

 

[Brunty_Farms]

They sell a fine netting that the birds get caught in and die. This works good for large amounts. I've heard of using glue traps (the big ones) The birds land on it and sufficate. Also if you can get your chickens put in another location for a couple of days you can put down some poisen seed, this is probably the most effective. I would eliminate the layer food and put down a tray of the seed. Make sure you clean everything up really good before bringing your layers back.

I would do something quick as breeding season is quickly approaching.

 

[scooter147]

The poison seed is a dangerous propisition. You are taking a huge chance that the chickens will get into it if you do not do a good job of cleaning it up.
It is probably illegal as well. Keep in mind that the seed is available to all birds and wildlife. (I only have problems with starlings in my coops).
There was a gentlemen in Southern Illinois (right across the Mississippi from me) who was charged and convicted of a FEDERAL crime for poisoning the common black bird ( a non protected species). He was charged for killing the red-winged black bird, a protected species, as they ate the poison seed as well. He also was charged and convicted of killing several raptor species. As the birds layed flapping and kicking as they died the birds of prey feed on the dieing birds and ingested poison and died as well.
He is spending a good period of time in the Federal Penetentery.
I don't know about you but I don't want to get to know BUBBA.

 

[deerman]

Place any kind of poison, out for birds or wildlife is a bad idea!!!!!

Some even use fly bait to kill wildlife, which also kill many of the honey bee hives.

Laws on proper use of poisons. Jail time for those who dont want to handle it proper.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

I would just place it in the coops, not outside. That would not be smart. But it is legal as an uncle is a pest control guy and does this routinely for Home Depots and such.

Also you have to make sure it's cleaned up really good before putting the hens back into the coop.

 

[PortageGirl]

When they mass in the trees around here I always look around for Mr. Hitchcock!!! There's tens of THOUSANDS of them I swear!!! Thankfully they're really only bad in the late winter here, they mass in the fall too but don't seem too interested in eating... they just seem to form up for their trip wherever.

I heard that sparrows actually came over in ships... some nested in older ships and more recently getting trapped in cargo holds. That could be wrong though.

Starlings are EVIL!! Sparrows, not so much.

 

[spectrumranch]

We have a large population of starlings that has moved in. ONE starling will eat about 2 pounds of feed per month. Doesn't seem like much until you take that times the at least 300 that we have eating here right now every day.

My pheasant pens that house a trio or quad of pheasants that the starlings can get thru the wire or go thru the netting on top------go thru 2 to 3 times as much feed than the pens with 6 to 8 pheasants where the starlings can not get in.

I figure the starlings are eating at least $150 worth the feed each month.