Evening star., 1944-05-12
This and That
By Charles E. Trdce1DeH.
HAT NV ATY>nTA W.

Dear Sir:
We enjoy your column very much,
and especially since we have begun
bird feeding station on the roof adja-
cent to our apartment.
I'VE were able to identify fox SPAR
row, which has been a regular customer
for some time, through your description.
we like the sparrows and mocking-
birds most, perhaps because they feed
at the station every day A cardinal
comes occasionally, and song sparrows
frequently
"Starlings and blackbirds seem to get
more than their share of the food, but
We have never really minded them. 80,
Now, however we have a real diff
Guilty.
Pigeons have discovered the free
lunch. They gobble up everything and
| then sit in row on the nearby roof
| waiting for more
AS many as IL appear. We have
| contrived large drum of wire net,
raised far enough from the floor so
| that the sparrows can get under it but
the pigeons not.
only one sparrow has dared to get
under, so far (the saucy fox sparrow :,
and the pigeons practically kneel down
with their tails in the air to get as far
under as they can.
Have you any suggestions as to how
! to deal with pigeons?
I'VE would be pleased to have a pair
OF mockingbirds or cardinals nest on
the roof Do you think they could be
induced to do SO? We have put up one
house, but have had no tenants. OF
course there are many fine nesting sites
| in the trees and bushes along the river
nearby.
May we thank you for the pleasure
we derive from your accurate and wise
observations?
Very truly yours, r. p"
The common pigeon is perhaps the
greatest nuisance at feeding station
intended for the smaller birds.
1t comes in such numbers that 1t
sends the cost of feeding the birds sky
high. 1t is not very interesting, in such
q setting. 1t causes a great deal of
trouble with neighbors, sometimes, and
cannot be said to be a very clean bird.
It's intelligence and persistence make
1t difficult to drive away, especially
when the numbers increase to one or
two dozen.
This flock will remain perched on a
nearby roof-always one from which
the birds can get good view of the
feeding place-for hours and even DAYS
at time, waiting for food to be put
out.
Not putting out any food, therefore,
| will not work at all. The pigeons SIM
ply are more persistent than human
| being.
All sorts of strategems have been
| tried, but they usually result In keep
ing the small birds away, and almost
always the pigeons manage to get some
| food, in one way or another. Often
| squirrels get in and rake out enough
for the pigeons.
The old saying, that one ounce of
| prevention Is better than a pound of
! cure, holds good in regard to common
| pigeons at feeding station. II they
can be driven away when only two or
| three come, 1t is much better than to
wait until a dozen or 20 birds make
daily visits
We believe that if our correspondent
| persists, the Sparrows and other small
birds IN time will find out how to creep
under the wire. They still will scat
ter enough seed to satisfy the pigeons
winch, though large, can manage to get
along on very little food a day.
The only sure way to drive them off
is to shoot them, and this is q remedy
which most persons who like birds do
not wish to use. Even an air gun is
dangerous instrument. A sling shot,
using very light pellets of some sort,
might be tried, but the user will have to
be more persistent than a pigeon and
that means super persistent
II the numbers can be cut down
that is about as much as one reasonably
may expect to do
AS for inducing mockingbrdS or
cardinals to nest on a roof, all we can
say is that 1t cannot be done There
Is some chance that wren Or sparrow
| might nest in such site, and there
fore we recommend that a wren house
be installed in a quiet corner, but at
distance from the feeding place. 1t is
worth trying, although probably Moth
Ing will come of 1t. Most birds prefer
trees and shrubs for nesting sites.