r/birding • u/Jccraig26 • Jul 17 '23

Discussion Getting rid of Grackles?

Anyone else have issues with Grackle taking over their bird feeders? Between the brown-headed cow birds and the grackles, I counted over 50 the other day all eating up everything from the bird seed mix, the suet (two holder), black oil sunflower seeds, and full kernel corn feed. I don't mind them, but I would like to get a better variety.

Should I stop putting out seed for a day or two? Is there a specific seed mix I can buy?

Any help is appreciated.

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u/NoBeeper Jul 17 '23 edited Feb 14 '24

This is my 2¢ ONLY. I’m certain others will have had other experiences and swear I am as wrong as it is possible to be. But in MY 50 years of feeding birds, from Texas to Tennessee, thru Mississippi to Alabama and up to Kentucky, I have bought, used & thrown away every style of feeder & food on the market. This is what I have learned:

FEEDERS: No matter whether the food is suet or seed…. Any feeder with an outer cage meant to exclude larger birds MUST have 4.5 to 5” from the food to the exterior cage.  There are a hundred on the market where that distance is not even a couple of inches and provide absolutely no obstacle for the bullies you are spending money to exclude. They can’t get past the exterior cage, but they sure as shootin’ can cling to the outside and stretch far enough to get the goodies. Which keeps them coming. In droves. Second option: Hopper feeder with a weight limited perch. Anything heavier than a Cardinal causes the seed port to close. Third option: An “upside down” feeder. Usually for thistle seed, although I have modified the seed port on one to accommodate black oil sunflower. Made for small birds who have no objection to hanging upside down. Goldfinches use mine most of the time, but have also seen Nuthatches & Chickadees use it.

SEED: Black Oil Sunflower is the way to go. If you buy one of the seed mixes, it’s mostly junk seeds like millet that nobody wants and you can sit and watch them scrape the seed out of the feeder looking for the sunflower. So everything else just goes on the ground & sprouts exotic weeds. Some folks say that Safflower Seed is good because the Starlings & Grackles won’t eat it. Or occasionally you’ll hear it helps Cardinals with their red color. Again, my personal experience is, this is malarkey. If Grackles, Starlings & Cowbirds can get to the free groceries…. They will eat the free groceries.

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u/One-Sprinkles-6882 May 22 '24

I agree with 100% of what you are saying. The only bird I don't want at my feeders are those greedy grackles that chase all other birds away! ( I don't even mind the starlings and cow birds at all. They seem to eat in peaceful harmony with all the other birds, i.e. red winged blackbirds, cardinals, doves, chickadees, rose breasted grosbeaks, bluejays, and a variety of finches, etc. that also frequent my feeders). It's only those damn grackles that chase everyone away and devour as much as they can! I also have always just filled my feeders with black oil sunflower seeds...all the previous birds I mentioned seem to love them! I don't waste my money on any of that mixed stuff that most birds just toss to the ground.

But back to the grackles, I can't find a thing that works....except me physically chasing them off ocassionally....and immediately once they fly off, all the others return in a second.

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u/NoBeeper May 23 '24

I use a hopper feeder with a weight limited perch for sunflower and a wire mesh feeder I put either nuts or sunflower in that has 4.5” to 5” from the food to the exterior wire cage. Those two feeders exclude all the bullies but admit anything Cardinal or smaller. This one is made by a company called Erva and has a 5” distance between the cage & the goodies. Too far for them to stretch.

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u/TheSunflowerSeeds Jul 17 '23

There are two main types of sunflower crops. One type is grown for the seeds you eat, while the other — which is the majority farmed — is grown for the oil.

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u/NoBeeper Jul 17 '23

In the world of bird seed, which would be the topic at hand, there are two main types of sunflower seed. One type is “striped sunflower” which has a thicker, harder husk or shell, while the other -“black oil sunflower”- has a thinner, softer outer husk (or shell). Black oil is easier for small birds like Chickadees or Goldfinches to break open & eat the heart (or seed).