Black Phoebe(?) and Bird Feeder (1 Viewer)

[Sambonator]

Hello!

I had read that Black Phoebes only eat insects and do not feed at the bird feeder. However I see this bird coming to feed daily from my feeder.
Am I misidentifying this bird? Here are some pictures below. BTW I'm in Southern California, pictures taken in Newport Beach, CA in my yard. Thank you in advance!

 

[rkj]

Welcome to the group. The bird is a Black Phoebe. Is it eating the seed, or just using the feeder as a perch? Black Phoebes will return to a favored perch again and again as they watch for insects.

 

[Sambonator]

Welcome to the group. The bird is a Black Phoebe. Is it eating the seed, or just using the feeder as a perch? Black Phoebes will return to a favored perch again and again as they watch for insects.

Thank you. He definitely eats from the bird feeder. Let me see if I can upload one... I have numerous footages of this Black Phoebe eating from my feeder.

I've been filling the feeder with peanuts, sunflower seeds, pecans, and sometimes almonds, always ground down to make it easier for the small birds to consume. I'll sometimes mix in unground down sunflower chips as well, as they're small enough to be easily consumed by the birds we get.


View attachment 112723_010.mp4

 

[foresttwitcher]

Not clear from the video but I suppose it could be catching insects attracted to the surface of the material on the feeder.

 

[Sambonator]

Here are a few more clips from the same day, of the Black Phoebe eating my nuts mix...

 

[rkj]

Some insectivores do eat some seeds and fruit from time to time, but this is the first I have heard of a Black Phoebe doing so. An interesting observation.