Does feeding garden birds do more harm than good?

I read that earlier - don't expect any useful information beyond "you're doing it wrong". :rolleyes:
 
Mike Toms, from the BTO, says feeding birds can have both benefits and unintended consequences, and he would not suggest that anyone simply take down their feeders.
"If you were going into a pristine habitat and putting out food, that would have consequences," he says. "But that doesn't apply within the UK. We don't have those landscapes.
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Good reminder on feeder hygeine though.
 
If we hadn't of made such a god damn awful mess of our environment and had said pristine ecosystem,I think our food interventions would be far less needed

but as it stands right now it will take some huge powers of persuading that what I am doing is wrong. I'm constantly astounded what comes to visit a small rural garden ...................at the moment goldie numbers are rocketing alot of late clutches this year so many young,right now.

The bigger picture is everything in nature needs a hand right now all these late fledglings wouldn't be here if we weren't making such a cock up of it all

Nice to see you back posting here, I kinda thing the boffin is missing the big picture and some !!

stu
 
Stuart Philpott said:
...wouldn't be here if we weren't making such a cock up of it all
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Or perhaps we're just doing what every other species does: surviving as best we can?
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
Or perhaps we're just doing what every other species does: surviving as best we can?
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And competing to drive the other species to extinction. Nature isn't some kind of happy, generous and peaceful environment where every creature willingly gives space to the next, but rather a chaotic system of intense competition for space and resources. It only balances because all the species that could be wiped out have been, and the remaining ones have not yet been able to drive each other to extinction.
 
I think we are doing just as you say Andrew surviving as best we can , but our influence on preddy much everything else is profound. No other species has dominated globally like we have or plausibly could rationalize said domination . Although after my first day back on site after a hols I'd question how well I'm surviving...OUCH

Buddy I don't have answers and feel I am as utterly guilty as anyone and also see Toni's POV Sure I'm a fluffy beastie hugger :p but I'm not immune to how raw nature is, that raw side has always been part of what has drawn me to wildlife image making although I don't capture those moments oft

Mind none of the above is going to stop me feeding all the ruffians that turn up here or me feeling the big picture is being missed:)
 
I've only just started to put food back out as there's been plenty of natural food in the woods & fields locally for a good couple of months. So much so that my feeders were being left half full, so they came down, got a good clean and were stored in the shed. I got them back out on Tuesday, and they've hardly been touched.

The ground feeders get cleared every day, but that's due to the Pigeons & Jackdaws. Since we moved in 2 years ago we've recorded 27 different species in the garden. That does include the Mallards who visited every day during the first summer (even though we don't have a pond), and the Red Kite & Buzzard who sit on the fence from time to time.
 
Given the sharp decline in the insect population in recent years, I fail to see how putting a few seeds and nuts out is going to tip the balance... If you want a bird feeder in your garden go for it.
My biggest problem was that bloody starlings and pigeons chased off the smaller birds I was more interested in...
 
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