Do you get Starlings in your garden?

[slwx]

Just out of curiosity. I know these have declined massively in some areas, some places I go say they never see them, but in my garden they are regular visitors.

[Mike C]

99% of birds in my garden are starlings.

[tuscan30]

No shortage of them around here (Aberdeenshire)

[Karl H]

Originally Posted by Mike C

99% of birds in my garden are starlings.

Same here. Have stopped putting out suet blocks now, as they just swamp the garden non-stop until they've eaten the lot. Also appears to stop other visitors.

[slwx]

Originally Posted by Karl H

Same here. Have stopped putting out suet blocks now, as they just swamp the garden non-stop until they've eaten the lot. Also appears to stop other visitors.

They steal all my mealworms! I hear robins and tits about, so I put out some mealworms... But the starlings are always hiding, in the trees, waiting... Lol.

But not far down the road, they say they never ever see them.

[mjb123]

My mum and dad have a telephone line pole in there back garden, when I was a young'n there used to be masses of them all sat on the lines making loads of noise and gobbling up all the food! Now probably 10 years on they get next to none!! Which is good because now they get lots of other stuff!!
Although a starlin is on my list of birds to picture!!

[slwx]

Originally Posted by mjb123

My mum and dad have a telephone line pole in there back garden, when I was a young'n there used to be masses of them all sat on the lines making loads of noise and gobbling up all the food! Now probably 10 years on they get next to none!! Which is good because now they get lots of other stuff!!
Although a starlin is on my list of birds to picture!!

At first, at my feeders, I'd just get starlings. Nothing else would approach, but now things seem to be getting braver. Sparrows will feed alongside them, and other birds will as well. Though the feeder for the goldfinches is on the other side of the garden, and there is another for the sparrows as well. I just wonder if I would see more blue tits if there were less starlings, sometimes the blue tits land on the fence, wait for a gap, but the starlings won't leave, and the blue tits change their minds!

[HopefulM]

not too many starlings in our garden, they come in fits & starts...

lots & lots of sparrows, some blue tits, great tits, occasional nuthatch, occasional woodpecker, robins (and they're always squabbling!) greenfinches, goldfinches, blackbirds, wood pigeons & collared doves, a ****ing heron, the odd owl, very very occasionally a pair of ducks. Oh yeah, and the short dumpy bird that goes out and feeds them

[Thomas Covenant]

Nope , not since the last cold winter but they are currently around the village and only just down the road from my house where a small group congregate on the telephone lines but only 4 or 5 of them. They are nesting near there too.
John

[GeordieStew]

Lots of starlings. I've stopped putting suet out too. Also looking for a mealworm device that starlings can't get into. Leaving some for the sparrows and tits. I've tried the adjustable ones, but the starlings are tenacious buggers!

[Matt_SX]

Voted occasionally

See various groups of starlings, specially after a downpour, but must admit not half as many as we used to see
Live in Essex

[WilliamC]

Not since I stopped putting peanuts out (advice from this very forum!). Since they left I've had a huge influx of other varieties. I'm happy with the arrangement

[BRASH]

Originally Posted by tuscan30

No shortage of them around here (Aberdeenshire)

Agreed

[Big Andy]

Loads of starlings around my garden especialy if I put out meal worms. Thats in Newport South Wales.

[SarahLee]

They're certainly not in decline here.

We have a flock that must number in the thousands fly over the house every morning and back at dusk to roost.

(Same place as Andy - they seem to head over to Tredegar Park during the day)

[ian Bennett]

We get the odd one or two, most days, but nothing like they used to be, I think the local Magpies keep the numbers own.

[slwx]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

Originally Posted by SarahLee

They're certainly not in decline here.

We have a flock that must number in the thousands fly over the house every morning and back at dusk to roost.

(Same place as Andy - they seem to head over to Tredegar Park during the day)

Ever seen the murmurations?

[SarahLee]

Originally Posted by slwx

Ever seen the murmurations?

Well you learn something new every day
That one drove me to Google, but now that I know what it means the answer is yes!!!

[Big Andy]

Where did you see them Sarah, anywhere around our part of the world?

[DonnaM]

They are a b***** nuisance here. I am trying to develop a starling proof feeder that lets the smaller birds in (the commercially available ones are useless). I am getting there but there is always one clever b*****.

[Scotty Pro]

At one time we never ever saw them around here, but at my mothers there was hundreds of the little buggers , all the other birds couldn't get a look in for them, they ate everything in sight.
Now they seem to be encroaching into my garden but I tend to scare them off, the local Magpies don't like the Starlings either, they tend to scare them off

[mark richards]

very much a drastic decline in my area...many about in my younger days, due to modernization in the houses these days, no places for them to nest...which is a shame,
a very pretty bird...mark

[ChickenDipa]

Some, not as many as we use to get but we do get a lot of variation now. Sparrows, blue tits + other tits, robins, green finch, chaffinch and many many gold finches!

[Ploddles]

Not in decline here, if anything the exact opposite. I'd be surprised if a day went by when I didn't have 10-15 in the garden at a time, often more.