Feeding the world

Our spring feeders are being emptied, not just by pheasants but by every bird and animal imaginable. It is costing us a fortune. Is there any way we can reduce ‘undesirables’ from eating this feed without negatively affecting the small birds and gamebirds that we like?

You will never eliminate unwanted use completely, but there are a few things you can do to reduce it.

First, replace any weak, damaged or stretched springs that spill feed all over the floor at the slightest touch.

Second, get some used standard stock fencing and cut it into lengths long enough to form a loop around the feeder. The ring of wire, when placed with large holes down (the opposite to how it hung as stock fencing), will allow access for pheasants, partridges and small farmland birds, but deter muntjac and badgers, and to a degree woodpigeon and corvids, which will panic if startled inside the loop.

An added bonus is that the wire offers some protection to feeding birds, such as partridges, from raptors. LB

Take steps to protect your feed