My Garden is SO quiet. Where have all the birds gone? (1 Viewer)

[Thelma W.]

I am beginning to get worried. By this time of year the birds are usually returning to our garden in droves, but for about three weeks now it has been quieter than August/September. I hope they are finding natural food in the fields round about, but I do miss them. :-C

Is anyone else experiencing the same thing? The Blue Tits, Great Tits and one or two greenfinches and collared doves pop in now and again, and two goldfinches, but little else. I have compared my notes from previous years and the figures are really down, both species and numbers of each.

Please tell me I am not alone?

 

[Ruth Daniel]

Hi Thelma,
Don't worry I'm having exactly the same happening here!
Not a Blue,Great or Coal tit in sight for weeks now!!
Sunflower hearts just left with no takers apart from a few Sparrows!!
I think it's because it's been so mild and there has been so many natural foods for the birds that our gardens have been temporarily deserted!
Hopefully they'll soon return when the weather begins to worsen and they get hungry again!!
I hope so anyway!!!
Best wishes,

 

[Silvershark]

I have the opposite happening compared to last year, I seem to have MORE birds in including the goldfinches that I think are sticking around. The blackbirds and thrushes are still absent, but they are happily munching away on hawthorn berries not far away I do believe!

The starling numbers dropped, but they have increased again now and there is a large flock flying around and there are so many crows around! I thought they were rooks because we have those in the area too when I saw them gathering in large numbers, turned out they were crows (with jackdaws among them).

 

[Mary Evelyn]

Hi Thelma,

We lost the birds for a while but they are now back in high numbers.Being in the North East, it is pretty cold and I am sure you won't be far behind us.Chin up, they are on their way. :bounce:

 

[Soyeb]

:hi: Dont worry Thelma they will come back because mine have and they do that every year I have sparrows, dunnocks, robins, blue tits, wrens and blackbirds visiting my garden now.

 

[mauricek]

Hello Thelma. I am in the same boat .You would think there wasn't a bird for miles. My feeders are not being used ,fat balls untouched and my ground table is deserted after all the food I bought for winter.I have alot of patience but this is really,really depressing.I suppose they will turn up when it's freezing their bills off. I sincerely hope so for all of us .

maurice (

 

[The Raptor]

Hello Thelma.

I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, I also find that the birds are not about as much at the moment. A few blue tits & great tits are starting to show & a couple of visits by the goldfinches.

There are plenty of sparrows, starlings, feral pigeons & crows, also gulls. As Mary E who lives in the north said her birds are coming back now in the colder weather & I'm sure the same will happen further south soon.

Best of luck Thelma.

 

[Liebchen]

Hello Thelma, Maurice and Ruth

Please don't give up I'm sure they are on their way. I live in the north and I get lots of birds as Kat and Mary Evelyn do. My feeders have been busy all spring, summer and still are now. I don't get the blackbirds coming for raisins anymore. There are lots of berries now and I've seen them taking the berries off the trees round my garden. I'm sure it has something to do with it being colder up here. It hasn't been quite as dry as in the south either this summer. What I did notice today on my walk round the woods is that there were no acorns or similar woodland seeds around at all. Last year the woodland floors were covered in acorns.

I'm sure as it gets colder up here some of the birds will start to move south. If not please let me know and I'll send you some down via pigeon post. o

Best wishes and lot of birdies soon, Liebchen

 

[Thelma W.]

Hello Thelma.
There are plenty of sparrows, starlings, feral pigeons & crows, also gulls. As Mary E who lives in the north said her birds are coming back now in the colder weather & I'm sure the same will happen further south soon.
Best of luck Thelma.

Thank you all. I think this is the quietest our garden has ever been since we started feeding daily nearly four years ago. I looked back through my BTO sheets which confirmed it. I did wonder whether my neighbour cutting down seven or eight conifers has had any bearing on it. These weren't hedges, you understand but very tall separate trees! It certainly upset the collared doves, and there is less protection from the cats, up to 14 different ones at times, and none of them ours!

There is more activity in our garden at night, at the moment, than there is during the day. We did have a couple of cold days when more appeared, so I am sure you are all correct. The garden just seemed so lifeless. I am glad it is not just us.

We have noticed that the crow population seems to be growing year on year, and they are increasingly vocal. We used to hear them just in January/February but the other day there were upwards of 20, in one of the big trees, making a heck of a racket.

Last night was so beautiful - nearly a full moon, clear skies, with ribbons of fluffy clouds, pinky shading on the horizon from distant street lights, huge black tree silhouettes, aeroplane lights winking, and much activity in the garden. I could hear the owl, and I look forward to bare trees later in the year, in the hope that I might catch a glimpse with the NV scope. I could have sat and watched all night.

Thanks again,

 

[Thelma W.]

I'm sure as it gets colder up here some of the birds will start to move south. If not please let me know and I'll send you some down via pigeon post. o
Liebchen

Aaah! Bless! Thank you :t: There don't seem to be many acorns around here either. The ground round oak trees is usually covered, and lots usually end up in our garden. Do they have alternate good seasons I wonder?

 

[roosmum]

Aaah! Bless! Thank you :t: There don't seem to be many acorns around here either. The ground round oak trees is usually covered, and lots usually end up in our garden. Do they have alternate good seasons I wonder?

Hi Thelma, I'm sure I read something a couple of days ago about there being very little beech mast and acorns this year, I think you're right and it's just a bad season. I'm sure the reason it's so quiet in the garden is because the weather is so mild. We're half way through October and I still don't need to put the fire on when I get up in the morning.

 

[mauricek]

Since my earlier post I have realised that it is so wrong for one to wish cold weather would force birds to feed in our gardens for our pleasure.We should be happy that they can manage without us at the moment yet be prepared to help them when they need it.It,s frustrating I know but that's the way it should be.

remorseful maurice

 

[Fat Rat]

Hi All
Whilst sitting in the garden this morning at about 6 o-clock I could hear loads of birds singing but I am still not getting any takers at my feeders, I am now trying the old favourite of mealworms but still don't seem to have any luck, I am starting to get a bit dispondent, it is frustrating when you know they are out there, but it must be down to the weather being a bit warmer I guess.

 

[stradling]

Hi Thelma.
Like some others we have not had a blank period this year , still have to fill both feeders every day! At least my sunflowers have done so well the tits can feed direct on those.
Many more long tailed tits in the garden than usual.
And lots of Mistle thrushes in the Yew trees I counted 20 yesterday.
Frank

 

[Cathy H]

Hi Thelma,

I wish to pass on the same sentiments as others who've posted before me. From what I can gather, you lot further south have been having gloriously warm, dry weather. Up here it's been very wet, wild, and extremely windy! It's calmed down a bit now but it's got colder.

I've been worried that I've not seen any blackbirds or thrushes for some time, but as others have seen them eating berries, I hope mine are too.

This morning, I moved the feeders at the back of the house, so the leaves could be collected. Where I'd had the cage protecting the ground feeder, there was loads of seeds scattered on the ground. Before long, I'd never seen so many birds in the garden (still no blackies). There were stacks of chaffinches mopping up the seed, whilst the robin, coal tits and a few chaffies ate from the re-sited ground feeder. Blue tits were on the fat ball and the great tits were munching on the peanut feeder. All told, I reckon there must have been close to 50 of the little darlings, and that's without the feeders at the front of the house! Don't worry, I'm sure you'll see your friends again soon. At least they can rely on you to have their dinner waiting for them when they need it.

Cheers :bounce: LOL!

 

[Thelma W.]

Since my earlier post I have realised that it is so wrong for one to wish cold weather would force birds to feed in our gardens for our pleasure.We should be happy that they can manage without us at the moment yet be prepared to help them when they need it.It,s frustrating I know but that's the way it should be. remorseful maurice

Maurice, you have made such a good point there, and I am feeling remorseful along with you. :'D I think we all forget what we are really doing it for, don't we, when we get such pleasure from them?

Re. other posts, weather here in the West Midlands has been unbelievably mixed - I think we have had just about everything over the past few weeks, including another mini hurricane! Mowing the lawn in a t-shirt (and trousers!) this afternoon I was too hot.

Thanks again Maurice for your thoughts. Perhaps we should only get worried when whole species take a dive in numbers, and even these seem to vary depending what area you live in.

 

[Bridie]

It is so strange - some parts of the country are sadly lacking in garden birds other parts are inundated.

I have been having flocks of 40+ greenfinches - numbers rising daily, and nearly as many sparrows. Is it more to do with the type of garden than with the part of the country or the weather.

I live in semi-suburbia - surrounded by mature gardens with quite a number of very tall trees both deciduous and conifer. A lot of the neighbours also feed birds so I think we must together support a large number of seed eaters.

A few weeks ago I went to Moffat (Dumfries) and the garden there was also full of finches - this time chaffinches, but again seed eaters, - large, mature gardens, many trees and large bushes and again most of the neighbours were actively feeding the birds. Those of you who have gardens empty of birds, what are your suroundings like? My mother supports an enormous number of sparrows and tits in her mature garden - surrounded by like minded, bird feeding neighbours. We all know that birds like to flit from feeding station to feeding station during the day, is it therefore necessary for you to have other bird feeding people near in order to support a reasonable size population of birds - or am I talking complete rubbish!!! :hi: :gn:

Bridie

 

[Renee Redstart]

It is so strange - some parts of the country are sadly lacking in garden birds other parts are inundated.

I have been having flocks of 40+ greenfinches - numbers rising daily, and nearly as many sparrows. Is it more to do with the type of garden than with the part of the country or the weather.

I live in semi-suburbia - surrounded by mature gardens with quite a number of very tall trees both deciduous and conifer. A lot of the neighbours also feed birds so I think we must together support a large number of seed eaters.

A few weeks ago I went to Moffat (Dumfries) and the garden there was also full of finches - this time chaffinches, but again seed eaters, - large, mature gardens, many trees and large bushes and again most of the neighbours were actively feeding the birds. Those of you who have gardens empty of birds, what are your suroundings like? My mother supports an enormous number of sparrows and tits in her mature garden - surrounded by like minded, bird feeding neighbours. We all know that birds like to flit from feeding station to feeding station during the day, is it therefore necessary for you to have other bird feeding people near in order to support a reasonable size population of birds - or am I talking complete rubbish!!! :hi: :gn:

Bridie

I don't know enough about it, but your theory sounds ok to me, Bridie. I'm not too far from you, and in a suburban garden full of mature trees and bushes with neighbouring gardens well stocked with same. I haven't as many greenfinches as you, but a steady 6 - 14 munching away every day. Several goldfinches, a few chaffinches, and regularly a couple of great tits, blue tits, and a solitary coal tit, plus usual collared doves and woodpigeon. They've never gone away, and the garden is always busy. Irregular visits from the sparrowhawk too. It's only the blackbirds who show their usual shyness at this time of year, but I always have at least one lurking in the dense undergrowth, eating the insectivorous mix I put out. And the starlings are fewer in number than the heady days of last autumn. But then, that was the first time for more years that I can remember, that I even had starlings at all. I have to strain to see the robin make a once weekly appearance (just so he can get into the BTO count I expect! It's funny how so many bird species sometimes haven't appeared all week, and then pop in on Saturday as I'm about to tot up my weekly count ).
So I don't really know the answer to this variation in people's gardens. Proximity to natural foods in the wild must play a part. I often wonder where my goldfinches are when they're not in my garden, as I'd never seen any until I started putting out the nyger and sunflower hearts.

 

[Bridie]

I don't know enough about it, but your theory sounds ok to me, Bridie. I'm not too far from you, and in a suburban garden full of mature trees and bushes with neighbouring gardens well stocked with same. I haven't as many greenfinches as you, but a steady 6 - 14 munching away every day. Several goldfinches, a few chaffinches, and regularly a couple of great tits, blue tits, and a solitary coal tit, plus usual collared doves and woodpigeon. They've never gone away, and the garden is always busy. Irregular visits from the sparrowhawk too. It's only the blackbirds who show their usual shyness at this time of year, but I always have at least one lurking in the dense undergrowth, eating the insectivorous mix I put out. And the starlings are fewer in number than the heady days of last autumn. But then, that was the first time for more years that I can remember, that I even had starlings at all. I have to strain to see the robin make a once weekly appearance (just so he can get into the BTO count I expect! It's funny how so many bird species sometimes haven't appeared all week, and then pop in on Saturday as I'm about to tot up my weekly count ).
So I don't really know the answer to this variation in people's gardens. Proximity to natural foods in the wild must play a part. I often wonder where my goldfinches are when they're not in my garden, as I'd never seen any until I started putting out the nyger and sunflower hearts.

Hello Renee
It sounds as though we have very similar garden populations (house populations too - I also have 2 grown up lads, only 1 still at home though, in spite of the daily hints!!) - apart from the starlings - in the Winter I get SO many, I have to protect the fat feeder and the peanuts for the tits otherwise they don't get a look in.
The number of blackbirds is dependent on how much fruit I put out. So it must be regional, which really is obvious when you come to think of it.

Do you know of any bird clubs in the Northampton area that deal mainly with garden birds? I have always fancied attending a local bird club, but not one where you are expected to have vast knowledge of birds you have no chance of spotting on a daily basis. It is only recent, since I stopped working full-time, that I have become interested in birds and although we always try to do some bird spotting when we go away. I find identification of birds other than garden ones quite difficult.

Bridie

 

[Paminfra]

As usual a good variety of garden birds now and one very young Yellowhammer has joined them. Haven't seen any Coal or Marsh Tits as yet but it's a bit early for those. Also, there is a very good covering of acorns this year but I haven't been in the forest much yet (no mushrooms and still too dry) to see how the Beech mast is doing.

Pam.