I had noticed fewer birds coming to my feeders, but it may be weather related. I suspect that the natural food supply was good this fall, all the (female) hollies are covered in berries. Yesterday should have been a good test of that hypothesis - certainly the numbers at my feeder appeared to be more in line with expectations. Another factor can be if your neighbors have feeders, they may have a more attractive restaurant! One good source of information on trends of birds visiting feeders is to participate in Project FeederWatch. You can monitor the number of each species coming to your feeder according to Cornell's standard protocol, and they have lots of resources and information. See _http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/_ (http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/) Wendy Ealding