This spring I finally had enough of Steller's Jays stuffing themselves with the
sunflower seeds in my feeder and then carrying them away to a cache some place,
cleaning it out in about twenty minutes and leaving nothing for other birds. So
I built a platform feeder with an interior box to keep seed from reaching the
outside of the platform, then screened it off with wire mesh large enough to
allow passage of birds as large as grosbeaks and smaller, but small enough to
keep out larger birds. It worked beautifully. One or two Steller's Jays come
about once a day, reach cautiously through the wire for what few seeds the
other birds have scattered to the outside, and after about sixty seconds fly
away. Band-tailed Pigeons land on top of the wire, peer down at the seeds they
cant reach, then after a few attempts at hanging on to the side of the cage,
give up and leave. But the rest of the birds come in droves. This morning there
were fourteen Purple Finches and two male Black-headed Grosbeaks crowding the
feeder at the same time. Most of them fly away when the four Red-winged
Blackbirds come, but the blackbirds don't stay too long. American Goldfinches,
Spotted Towhees, Song and White-crowned Sparrows, and Evening Grosbeaks come
all day long and take turns at the feeder. Mourning Doves gather beneath on the
ground. There are probably thirty or more birds using the feeder, and it takes
them all day to use up one 4" x 2-3/4" can of sunflower seed.
Darrel
