Nary a Canary

[Wingnut]

Behind my house is a good sized field complete with bushes, trees and a pond. There are lot of goldfinches back there. That's the problem....I just can't seem to coax them into our back yard to the feeders. My wife and I bought those cylindrical goldfinch feeders, with the correct seeds and hung them from our fence posts but we haven't had a single goldfinch make the journey to our backyard. I can sit out on the back deck and watch them fly around just mere meters from my fence. I even know the exact location of two goldfinch nests just outside our back gate. I get a lot of birds at my other feeders and I have seen the goldfinches earlier in the Spring check them out but for some reason they seem to be always chased away by the others. The wild birds that venture into our backyard do not go near the goldfinch feeder, yet there is nary a canary.

I have a couple of theories": One is that we did not establish a goldfinch feeder quick enough and the birds found other areas to feed in. Two would be that the grounds behind my house provide the birds with more than enough food.

I'll add that just down the road from us, there a 3 Goldfinch feeders in a tree on someone's front lawn and everytime I drive by there are birds clambering all over them. What are we doing wrong?

[Halton Hills]

My wife and I bought those cylindrical goldfinch feeders, with the correct seeds and hung them from our fence posts

What type of feeder and what kind of seed exactly?

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Hung them from the fence post

Please describe

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[RKD]

I have a similar question regarding goldfinches. We have never had a lot of them at our feeders which are in our backyard, maybe 3-4. This winter however we had a steady flock of 30 or more along with a flock of over 30 Pine Siskens. Last week the Siskens disappeared, migration further north I assume. With them went the Gold finches. They are still in the area just when the Siskens stopped coming the Finches did too.  We used to fill our many feeders daily now haven't filled them in a week.

My theory is that they much prefer the open landscape (we have lots of trees and pretty heavy shade, only sun at high noon in our backyard). And when the Siskens left they felt more vulnerable coming here.
Don't  know how heavyily treed your lot is but maybe that could have an impact

[Napper]

Yep

It happens every year, they feed all  winter long on my seeds. When the trees flower and start to bud they go for the natural foods.

In late Feb and early march we had a boat load of Goldfinches.  So many in fact they would drop to the ground in search of food instead of waiting for a spot at

the feeders. I gave up on Nyger. I only use the black oil seed. Goldfinches love it just as much.

There are a ton of them around they just don't come to the feeder..

Napper..

I still have Nyger seed but now it is too old to put in the feeder

[Wingnut]

What type of feeder and what kind of seed exactly?

Its a long cylinder dotted with many small openings but no perches. Apparently the goldfinches clamber all over these things without the need of a perch to stand on. I use those black seeds recommended for Goldfinches, I think they're the black oil. It's   the same stuff the guy down the street uses and he has a lot of hungry visitors daily. I guess we wait for winter.

[Halton Hills]

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Yes, they will eat at that feeder......but, ideally, you should put up a nyjer (or niger) feeder.

It's a clear plastic tube that has 8 very small holes with perches.

The seed is tiny (see photo below)

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[Wingnut]

HH..... I have switched to a feeder just as you have photographed . I did this yesterday & as yet no goldfinches but I am patient. See what develops.

Still there is the odd time a goldfinch will come into my backyard and sit in a tree or even at the hummingbird feeders but when they approach the other seed eaters nearby they are chased off. I have noticed that the goldfinches are not welcome by the other birds. Is this normal?

[Halton Hills]

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Patience.....  

Just curious.....what birds are "chasing" the goldfinches?

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[Wingnut]

Patience has been rewarded. I just looked out to see not one but three goldfinches at the feeder. I thought I noticed the  seed column a little lower yesterday but today's sighting confirms the birds have finally found it. Nice to add that gold touch to the otherwise drab brown, grey, and black of the local bird plumage. I must be getting old to feel this excited about a bird.

[Ravin' Avian]

They love Swiss Chard! There is a couple that visit my parents garden. The last few times I visited the goldfinches were in the garden eating swiss chard for most of the day and don't care if someone is sitting out there. I think I saw them nibble on the beet greens and kale as well.

[Wingnut]

Well, all was going okay until recently. One of the red wing blackbirds that frequents my regular bird feeders has figured out that he can grab hold of the ports in the goldfinch feeder (chrome cylinder with hundreds of holes) and dine at his leisure. Of course the finches are too frightened by his presence. I figure that the blackbird must have learned how to grab hold by watching the finches since no other bird, and I get plenty, has managed to steal from the goldfinch feeder.

It got me to wondering just how intelligent some birds are. Did the blackbird learn by mimicking the goldfinch or was it just pure luck or happenstance? How much of bird behavior is governed by its own observational and copying skills?

Anyway the blackbird hasn't figured out how to raid the other goldfinch feeder. This one has a few places for a bird to stand or hang from but only one seed port per perch. I'm interested to see if the blackbird can do it. So I'm going to remove the chrome cylinder feeder and observe the blackbird to see if it moves over to the other finch feeder.