Angry Birds

[db5]

I built a bird feeder a couple of weeks ago. For the first week it was ignored. Lately it has been visited regularly by a Cardinal and a Blue Jay. The Blue Jay runs the Cardinal off if she sees it at the feeder. I guess she considers it her Napa Valley Private Reserve. Yesterday it was 1/3 full and empty this morning. The Blue Jay must have figured out how to tilt the bottle and empty it. When it was empty she attacked the bottle, ripped off the band around the neck and then attacked the feeder. Note the wood pieces at the bottom. I refilled it and will see what happens. I might need to put a retainer at the bottom so this doesn't happen again.

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[dgale]

Jays are really smart and clever. Some folks don't like them…noisy and obnoxious are the usual complaints…I personally like them and appreciate an animal with their intelligence. I have a hanging feeder and the jays will fly in hard at an angle and land on it, causing it to swing and dump excessive seed…their intent is to get at the peanuts and sunflower seeds, which are more to their liking. Funny thing is I've noticed the juncos, sparrows, chickadees etc. that also frequent the feeder are quite fond of this, as they simply forage off the ground under the feeder where all the excess seed spills - they like this as there's a wider feeding area and hence less competition then if they all had to try and land on the feeder itself and fight it out.

As for your feeder, perhaps try a larger stainless ring clamp to hold the bottle in place…the Jay won't break through that and the bottle should stay in place.