How to Keep the Starlings From Eating All of My Bird Seed

By AmeliaH

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

Chicken wire or caged bird feeders
Tube feeders
Domed feeders
Hopper feeders
Upside-down suet feeders
Safflower seed
Ultrasonic bird repeller

Step 1:
Use chicken wire to build a cage around your feeders, or buy a caged bird feeder. The holes in the wire will prevent larger birds such as starlings from getting in, while allowing smaller birds access to the feeders.
Step 2:
Set up more tube feeders. Starlings have a hard time eating from tube feeders because the perches are meant for smaller birds. If they keep trying to eat from the tube feeders, you can shorten the perches even more so only small birds can comfortably sit on them.
Step 3:
Feeders with domed roofs are another way to exclude larger birds. Adjust the height of the roof so smaller birds can fit comfortably but starlings and other large birds cannot get in.
Step 4:
Use hopper feeders with weighted perches. This allows smaller, lighter birds to feed, but causes the feeder to close if heavier birds such as starlings, or other animals such as squirrels, try to eat from the feeder.
Step 5:
Suet is a big attraction for starlings, so you might want to stop putting it out entirely for a few days so the starlings get tired and find somewhere else to eat. You can also use an upside-down suet feeder, which deters starlings and other birds who dislike eating upside down.
Step 6:
Replace sunflower seeds, which starlings like, with safflower seeds. Starlings will not eat safflower seeds, but other birds, such as cardinals and finches, love them.
Step 7:
If none of these work, consider using an ultrasonic bird repeller, which emits high frequencies to ward off large birds such as starlings.

Tips & Warnings

If you can't get rid of starlings, maybe you can learn to love them. Buy a birdwatching book and learn to identify starlings and other blackbird species.

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